The rating is just so unjustified for this brilliant drama. I request all the people wondering whether to watch it or not please don’t fall for the negative reviews and watch it for yourself. Here’s what’s happening - the drama had a huge pre-release hype because of the cast and production. Which attracted a lot of dynamic and versatile viewership. People who would not watch such melodramatic republican dramas as a first choice were also excited about this drama because of the huge publicity. I have not seen any republican era drama launched on such a huge scale ever before. It is by itself a risky genre because it involves a lot of melodramatic niche like betrayals, misunderstandings, killings, revenge, dramatic reunions, impossible coincidences, characters with hyped up emotions. All this might seem stupid and excessive to a watcher who preferres a slice-of-life, realistic drama like hidden love. So when such viewers watch these kind of dramas criticism is natuaral. For them the plot is too fast paced and the changing dynamics are too overwhelming to catch up to. One more criticism it received is about editing and cinematography. I agree angles and some effects at few places were really off. But I am a person who does not really notice technical details when it comes to dramas. In these matters my expectations are always very low because for me the emotional weight of the story, the intrigue, character development, acting and overall how captivating the story is matters more. My criteria is simple do I crave to hit the next episode button? and trust I finished watching al 25 episodes within one weekend. This drama kept me awake till 4 AM in the morning and that says it all. It’s very simple, you cannot choose to watch a horror movie and then complain that is has too many scary scenes. People need to understand genre specific requirements. The angst, the drama, the betrayals were all part of the hype and if they had mellow down on that part then it would have been a huge disappointment. For me the drama is serving because it is not holding back on storyline, plot twists and lots of drama; which is exactly the point many people are disliking. So I would urge people to first understand the niche and if it is not your cup of tea drop it, just comparing it with something as bland as first frost or hidden love is a mistake as per me. Something everyone would agree on though is the acting. Zhang Linghe is serving guys! Unlike Pursuit of Jade where he had limited scope of emotions and the character was bound by subtlety, in this one he has displayed array or emotions and he is an eye candy as usual with great performance. The romantic tension is also at its peak though sometimes the restrain of female lead feels frustrating but that’s the thing fueling these long episodes so can’t really blame that. I have watched over 300 dramas for last dacade. I have been in this since I was a teenager. I have watched everything from timeless classics and exceptional masterpieces to vertical dramas and low budget mini series, so I would say I understand what to expect from a particular drama, many people don’t. Criticism is a personal choice and it’s even good but I had to drop a comment (which I have never done for any drama in the past) because the rating is so so unsatisfactory and misleading. So as a long time drama fan I think I have done my job here and hope it helps genuine viewers!
Here’s what’s happening - the drama had a huge pre-release hype because of the cast and production. Which attracted a lot of dynamic and versatile viewership. People who would not watch such melodramatic republican dramas as a first choice were also excited about this drama because of the huge publicity. I have not seen any republican era drama launched on such a huge scale ever before. It is by itself a risky genre because it involves a lot of melodramatic niche like betrayals, misunderstandings, killings, revenge, dramatic reunions, impossible coincidences, characters with hyped up emotions. All this might seem stupid and excessive to a watcher who preferres a slice-of-life, realistic drama like hidden love. So when such viewers watch these kind of dramas criticism is natuaral. For them the plot is too fast paced and the changing dynamics are too overwhelming to catch up to.
One more criticism it received is about editing and cinematography. I agree angles and some effects at few places were really off. But I am a person who does not really notice technical details when it comes to dramas. In these matters my expectations are always very low because for me the emotional weight of the story, the intrigue, character development, acting and overall how captivating the story is matters more. My criteria is simple do I crave to hit the next episode button? and trust I finished watching al 25 episodes within one weekend. This drama kept me awake till 4 AM in the morning and that says it all.
It’s very simple, you cannot choose to watch a horror movie and then complain that is has too many scary scenes. People need to understand genre specific requirements. The angst, the drama, the betrayals were all part of the hype and if they had mellow down on that part then it would have been a huge disappointment. For me the drama is serving because it is not holding back on storyline, plot twists and lots of drama; which is exactly the point many people are disliking. So I would urge people to first understand the niche and if it is not your cup of tea drop it, just comparing it with something as bland as first frost or hidden love is a mistake as per me.
Something everyone would agree on though is the acting. Zhang Linghe is serving guys! Unlike Pursuit of Jade where he had limited scope of emotions and the character was bound by subtlety, in this one he has displayed array or emotions and he is an eye candy as usual with great performance. The romantic tension is also at its peak though sometimes the restrain of female lead feels frustrating but that’s the thing fueling these long episodes so can’t really blame that.
I have watched over 300 dramas for last dacade. I have been in this since I was a teenager. I have watched everything from timeless classics and exceptional masterpieces to vertical dramas and low budget mini series, so I would say I understand what to expect from a particular drama, many people don’t. Criticism is a personal choice and it’s even good but I had to drop a comment (which I have never done for any drama in the past) because the rating is so so unsatisfactory and misleading. So as a long time drama fan I think I have done my job here and hope it helps genuine viewers!
Thank you!!