VelvetLady852
Land of Pristine Beaches & Friendly Folks
“Under the Power” is under the radar no more
"Under the Power" had been under the radar for me until recently, when I saw a FB recommendation, which brought it to my attention again (have known about this drama before). It helps that the story's male lead is an Imperial Brocaded Guard (锦衣卫), the female lead is a detective from the Police's 6th Division (六扇門), and it's set during the Ming dynasty, which would make it an interesting watch for me. I admit, the 55 episodes were a bit daunting, but as I continued watching, it didn't seem that long since there are many things happening in the story.
What I Like:
1) It's my first time to watch the main leads, Allen Ren and Seven Tan, in a drama, and they are amazing! It's so much fun to watch them here. In my opinion, they carried the drama in large part, and they have great chemistry. Seven Tan is such a revelation to me. She's good in both the funny and serious/emotional scenes, and I find her acting to be natural. Now I understand why she is so well liked and has many projects. She is a very good actress.
2) I like how the romance between Lu Yi (Allen Ren) and Yuan Jin Xia (Seven Tan) developed. They rubbed each other the wrong way at the start, but as they solved cases and experienced ups and downs together, they learned to care, respect and eventually love each other.
3) Ding Yong Dai as Emperor Jia Jing - This is the nth time that I've seen this man play the role of emperor, and he never disappoints! He has this aura that makes him convincing as emperor.
4) For the first half or so, I didn’t care much about the second couple, Yang Yue (Lu Hong) and Shangguan Xi (Ye Qing), and I was not looking forward to their scenes. But somewhere along the way, they grew on me, and I came to appreciate their relationship.
5) Han Dong’s portrayal of Yan Shi Fan is subtle yet convincing. He seems easy-going and nonchalant, yet behind this façade, you can feel there is something more sinister.
6) As I mentioned, there were many happenings in the drama – different cases, realistic and unrealistic events, infiltrating pirates, seemingly supernatural stuff, court intrigue and whatnot, such that you might forget some of the details if you skip a few days of watching (as opposed to binge-watching it) – but they were able to connect these together and tie things up in the story.
Other Comments:
1) We know more or less who the main villains are early on, so there is little surprise factor here. It's a matter of unraveling the connecting pieces.
2) The character of Xie Xiao (Ethan Yao) – He is chivalrous, can be charming at times (especially in his unkempt look – beard and all), and full of good intentions, but he is also one of the most emotionally dense characters I've seen in a drama, to the point of being insensitive and clueless. More than once, I wanted to knock some sense out of him.
3) This drama has a lot of flashbacks. While these enhance the watch experience, too much of them can sometimes feel redundant. However, it's not a big deal for me, but I just want to point it out here.
4) Despite it being 55 episodes long, the last few episodes felt rushed and anti-climactic. Some important events were not even shown, just mentioned, like they’re not significant.
Final Verdict: Despite some cons, I like and enjoyed watching "Under the Power". If you like costume romance drama combined with action, humor, mystery, and some court intrigue, and don't mind the 55-episode length, then go watch this!
What I Like:
1) It's my first time to watch the main leads, Allen Ren and Seven Tan, in a drama, and they are amazing! It's so much fun to watch them here. In my opinion, they carried the drama in large part, and they have great chemistry. Seven Tan is such a revelation to me. She's good in both the funny and serious/emotional scenes, and I find her acting to be natural. Now I understand why she is so well liked and has many projects. She is a very good actress.
2) I like how the romance between Lu Yi (Allen Ren) and Yuan Jin Xia (Seven Tan) developed. They rubbed each other the wrong way at the start, but as they solved cases and experienced ups and downs together, they learned to care, respect and eventually love each other.
3) Ding Yong Dai as Emperor Jia Jing - This is the nth time that I've seen this man play the role of emperor, and he never disappoints! He has this aura that makes him convincing as emperor.
4) For the first half or so, I didn’t care much about the second couple, Yang Yue (Lu Hong) and Shangguan Xi (Ye Qing), and I was not looking forward to their scenes. But somewhere along the way, they grew on me, and I came to appreciate their relationship.
5) Han Dong’s portrayal of Yan Shi Fan is subtle yet convincing. He seems easy-going and nonchalant, yet behind this façade, you can feel there is something more sinister.
6) As I mentioned, there were many happenings in the drama – different cases, realistic and unrealistic events, infiltrating pirates, seemingly supernatural stuff, court intrigue and whatnot, such that you might forget some of the details if you skip a few days of watching (as opposed to binge-watching it) – but they were able to connect these together and tie things up in the story.
Other Comments:
1) We know more or less who the main villains are early on, so there is little surprise factor here. It's a matter of unraveling the connecting pieces.
2) The character of Xie Xiao (Ethan Yao) – He is chivalrous, can be charming at times (especially in his unkempt look – beard and all), and full of good intentions, but he is also one of the most emotionally dense characters I've seen in a drama, to the point of being insensitive and clueless. More than once, I wanted to knock some sense out of him.
3) This drama has a lot of flashbacks. While these enhance the watch experience, too much of them can sometimes feel redundant. However, it's not a big deal for me, but I just want to point it out here.
4) Despite it being 55 episodes long, the last few episodes felt rushed and anti-climactic. Some important events were not even shown, just mentioned, like they’re not significant.
Final Verdict: Despite some cons, I like and enjoyed watching "Under the Power". If you like costume romance drama combined with action, humor, mystery, and some court intrigue, and don't mind the 55-episode length, then go watch this!
Was this review helpful to you?
