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sarafilleSD

San Diego, CA

sarafilleSD

San Diego, CA
Moonshine and Valentine chinese drama review
Completed
Moonshine and Valentine
0 people found this review helpful
by sarafilleSD
Jun 19, 2020
25 of 25 episodes seen
Completed
Overall 7.0
Story 6.5
Acting/Cast 7.0
Music 7.0
Rewatch Value 1.0

High Potential Story Slides into Dissatisfaction w/o Romantic Chemistry & Tight Storytelling

What a super cool idea! I love fantasy & science fiction & I just thought this was an awesome story. A different, darker vibe & the pacing moved really well up until the last 3 episodes. The more dramas I watch, the more I've started to pay attention to pacing since so many stories lose focus or direction mid-way through and tbh, I lose focus if the momentum isn't building the way I want it to be. This one did not & kept my attention throughout the entire story, even if I became unsatisfied with it. That was the good. (In addition to that, I would add the VERY hot half-naked Johnny Huang scenes as well as the strangely sweet & endearing "love triangle" between the 2 male fox friends & the cafe owner. LOVED them.)

The bad was Victoria & Johnny's chemistry. Maybe her acting as well? Not sure, but there was very little romantic & sweet feelings felt between the leads so it was difficult to sell me their love story. I'm glad they had those glow thingies because I couldn't have known by looking at the characters interactions themselves. There was only 1 point you felt their intimacy, which was NOT ENOUGH for this supposedly epic 900 year love they had. Wait, what satisfaction canst thou have tonight? NOTHING. Because the exchange of love felt unearned from the leads. They grew very little as characters--actually few character achieved growth & this is another "bad" for me.

The worst was all the inconsistencies in the writing and production that just ruined a story with SO much potential. So for me, the worst is the end. It was a serious, fast, unwelcome decline & it didn't have to be. They could've taken those EXACT events, but not convoluted the story unnecessarily & created a different tone that left the audience with a feeling of satisfaction. Easy enough to gut the completely useless penultimate episode & anchor the resolution a little more strongly. But no! Here is yet another c-drama that fizzles out from poor editing/writing; who knows who's fault but it's just plain poor storytelling. :(

The music was an accessory & added to the darker vibe.
I would NOT rewatch the whole story but I will admit to rewatching some of Johnny's shirtless scenes. ;p
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