1
dramadisciple
Texas USA
It lives up to its hype!
This continues the story of Dong Hua & Feng Jiu from Eternal Love. When Eternal Love was being produced they didn’t have the rights to this story yet. So in Eternal Love they just made up a fictitious storyline for them. But in The Pillow Book they follow the book pretty closely. So just be aware that their story here is different and doesn’t pick up where it left off in Eternal Love. But don’t let that put you off. It’s an excellent drama well worth watching.Things that I liked:
Dilraba Dilmurat’s portrayal of a fox is spot on perfect. She’s so adorable! And I usually hate watching girls act cute but she just does such a good job of it. And the chemistry between her and Vengo Gao is off the charts just like in Eternal Love. It’s takes a while for them to get together but when they do there are lots of sweet moments for you romance lovers. There’s lots of real kisses, cuddles, flirting, and skinship. But what’s so great about this drama is that it’s way more than just romance. It has an amazing storyline. There’s political intrigue, great fight scenes, birth secrets, and warring gods. It’s a perfect combination of a deep period drama and a romance drama. It’s well paced with great music. I liked that the sad or angsty parts of the story didn’t get stretched out too long. They were there and they certainly got me more invested in the drama but they weren’t overdone to where I was stressed out and upset.
Things I didn’t like:
The storyline was quite similar to Eternal Love. It starts out with a Dong Hua having an adopted sister that’s obsessed with him just like Ye Hua had in Eternal Love. Then in the mortal realm Dong Hua has a love trial with Feng Jiu (and she has to break his heart) just like in Eternal Love. And yes, it was even harder the second time watching them suffer. Then of course there’s the evil being that’s locked up and trying to break free and destroy the world just like in Eternal Love. It’s eerily similar to Eternal Love and it made me wish it was a little different and more original. But I guess it’s really not their fault because they were just following the story written in the book.
That being said, it’s still an excellent drama that’s in my top 20 dramas and I’ve literally watched hundreds of them. Any drama that can take a similar storyline and make me love it this much has got to be great! It was well acted and the characters had so much depth and growth. It was well worth my time watching the full 56 episodes without skipping a single second. (Which is rare for me.) I liked that all of the questions were answered and there were no loose ends or open endings. And it didn’t kill off a bunch of beloved characters or make me sad or cry at the end like a lot of Chinese period dramas tend to do lately. It’s just a really good overall drama that never has a dull moment and gives you tons of characters that you enjoy and get invested in. I would highly recommend watching this drama.
Was this review helpful to you?
Great acting and amazing chemistry
Acting:
I’ve watched quite a few of Dilraba Dilmurat’s dramas and I thought historical dramas were what she did best, especially after Eternal Love. Boy was I wrong! Her acting in this was beyond my expectations! She’s so polished, confident, and smooth in this drama. After watching so many of her historical dramas it was quite refreshing seeing her in a modern setting. And of course Johnny Huang did an amazing job as usual. The whole cast were not only great actors but there was a lot of eye candy. Such a beautiful cast!
The romance:
Now I see why everyone talks about the main leads chemistry. It’s not just the steamy kisses or sparks flying between them. It’s how smooth and relaxed they were in scenes that would make most actors feel very uncomfortable. There’s were lots of kisses, cuddles, hand holding, foot rubs, back massages, princess carrying, and some serious flirting. And every time they made you feel like they’d been dating for many years in real life. It takes some serious acting skills to do that. And I also like that it took a while for the main leads to get together and you see them as they begin to have feelings for each other. It seemed like a more natural more realistic romance.
The story:
The fashion industry makes for an interesting setting and their clothes are beautiful. I liked that even though the main couple are faced with many obstacles on the path to happiness, nothing is drawn out too long or overdone. The love triangle in the beginning (thankfully) doesn’t stretch out for the whole drama as I expected it to. And each obstacle they face, once it’s handled it doesn’t keep coming back or get repetitive which kept the drama interesting. I also liked that this drama didn’t overdo the angst. It wasn’t overly melodramatic or overly sad. There is some conflict and angst but it’s nothing over the top or too upsetting. This drama felt more light and sweet to me which was refreshing. There are other couples and their stories are interesting. The family and friends were also very easy to like, even the crazy ones.
What I didn’t like was how heavy it got into work related issues for the last half of the drama. I also didn’t like how easily the main leads forgave all of the bad guys for all of the crap they pulled. It’s just not realistic. No one is that perfect. Other than that there wasn’t a lot to dislike about this drama.
Overall this is a really good drama with great acting, a diverse and interesting cast of characters, an interesting storyline and some really amazing chemistry. I’ll definitely watch it again.
Was this review helpful to you?
This will always be in my top 10 favorites
I’ve watched hundreds of dramas including Chinese, Japanese, Taiwanese, and Korean dramas. Despite watching so many Asian dramas this is still in my top ten favorites. It’s an amazing show well worth watching.This is a melodrama with a little bit of everything. There’s an epic romance, great comedy, political intrigue, warring gods, and excellent fighting scenes. The cinematography is really good. And I like that the female lead is a badass that can hold her own. It’s refreshing to see a female lead that’s not only strong and confident but super clever too. She single handedly defeats a very powerful god that few others could fight. And the male lead is one of my all time favorite male leads. He’s handsome, powerful, unselfish, and extremely loyal. This drama has a fair amount of angst but the sweetness of the romance, the depth of the story, the phenomenal acting, and the beautiful ending that ties up all the loose ends make it all worth it.
The love story of the main leads is what really drives this drama. I love that the male lead never waivers in his feelings for the female lead and will do anything for her. He never, even for a minute, gives up on her and is very open with his affection. I love how he tossed her over his shoulder and took her to their room when his strength and virility is questioned. And the numerous kisses are swoon worthy. There’s lots of skinship and sweet romantic moments too. Theirs is one of my all time favorite romances.
Another strength of this drama is the really great side characters. From the sweet little boy named Ali who just wants to find his mom, to the mischievous nine tailed fox Feng Jiu who valiantly pursues true love , to the powerful god Mo Yuan and his unrequited love, the side characters have so much depth and growth.
I normally don’t watch really long dramas but this one is so worth it. And I don’t rewatch dramas but I’ve rewatched this one several times. All of the side characters are interesting and there are cute side couples. This drama never has a dull moment. If I had to complain, it would be about the male leads adopted sister and her crazy obsession with him. But honestly, she should win an award for her acting. She really pulls you into her crazy head and does a great job of making you hate her.
Overall I’d say don’t pass this one up. Yes it’s long and yes it’s angsty and melodramatic which is not usually my cup of tea. I don’t like dramas that make me cry or get really upset. I usually prefer light sweet funny romcoms. But this drama is just too good to pass up. I’ll go back and get angry and cry because the romance is so touching and the side characters are so endearing that it’s worth it.
Was this review helpful to you?
Excellent acting, great story, & sweet romance
I’m not usually one to watch college romance dramas because (since the actors are so young) they often cut out kissing scenes, the romance tends to be a slow burn and the actors are sometimes a bit stiff and inexperienced. But there are a few college romance dramas that have a perfect blend of some great acting, an epic romance that sizzles, some hilarious comedy, and memorable characters that touch your heart. This is one of those dramas.I was surprised at how funny this was. The male lead is very quiet, serious, and focused. So when he’s put into awkward situations, his facial expressions are absolutely hilarious. In one really funny scene he uses a toothbrush to fish something out of a dish of soapy water only to realize, to his horror, that it is a bra. The look on his face was priceless! Then, when he has to explain to the female lead why her toothbrush is laying in that dish, I just about died laughing.
Even though this is a slice of life type of drama it’s not boring because the characters are refreshingly different and the story is interesting. I like that the male lead has a unique personality. He’s not your typical wealthy, arrogant heir that’s cold and aloof. He has many facets to his personality which is quite appealing. One minute he’s all cool and sexy. The next minute he’s this nerdy little genius scientist thats always creating or fixing things. Then he will show this sweet confused little puppy side. And the way he was always googling things on his phone because he was so clueless on how to handle most social situations was adorable. His acting was really very good too.
The female lead is outgoing, confident, hardworking, and loyal. She may be tiny but she’s feisty and always stands up for herself. As she’s about to graduate she realizes accounting isn’t really what she wants to do. The male lead encourages her to follow her heart and do what makes her happy. So she switches to advertising which really excites her. I really liked her characters growth and her acting was great.
What makes this drama so good (other than the great romance which I’ll get to later) are the really great side characters. Like the male leads classmate that was always throwing tantrums or pouting because the male lead was better than him at everything. His childish antics were hilarious. And it was so refreshing to hear the female leads mom tell her that she didn’t have high expectations for her in her career, she just wants her to be happy. It’s not often you see a parent in an Asian drama make that kind of statement. And watching her hilarious attempts at matchmaking the leads and getting them together was too cute. Then there was the Easter egg at the end of each episode with some behind the scenes stuff that I always looked forward to.
The romance here was just perfect. It wasn’t a slow burn but it wasn’t super fast insta love either. It was just right. There are some cute kisses, piggyback rides, cuddles, lots of handholding, and lots of sweet moments. And (thankfully) there aren’t any ridiculous breakups or noble idiocy either. They go through issues like any normal couple but they work through them together in a very normal realistic way.
This is a slice of life drama so you won’t see any evil devious characters, there aren’t any action scenes like car chases or kidnappings, and it’s not super sad or filled with angst. But it does have some super interesting characters, a sweet romance, a touching storyline, and hopefully you’ll walk away from it feeling all fuzzy inside like I did. This cute height difference couple will always be one of my favorite drama couples.
Was this review helpful to you?
Was this review helpful to you?
