aria

i really tried to like this, but only forced myself to finish for the couple chemistry and ding yuxi. i went in with above average expectations, but sad to say i was let down.

let me list what i liked and what i didn’t:

what i liked/worked for me:
- DING YUXI
- supportive FL family and friends, no drama
- smart FL
- overall supportive main couple with good chemistry
- the costumes and makeup were comfortable to look at
- the empress dowager
- OSTs

what didn’t work for me:
- the story: the overarching mystery/case was not intriguing enough and they really managed to stretch it out for 40 eps, despite a few mini cases that served to add up to the main mystery
- slow burn romance that was a bit too slow for my liking: the FL is super clueless to ML feelings and this goes on for a while, many things could’ve been sped up with decent communication
- so many filler episodes and side characters that take up screen time and add minimal value to the story. same with sub-plots that almost lead nowhere every time
- the plot essentially was not plotting at all, the finale was underwhelming and predictable, villain is one dimensional

this show got lost in its own story, and while i appreciated the efforts to tie up everything, the process took way too long and by the middle i was so bored and lost interest in most characters and the story. the only saving grace was our two leads who acted very well.