Jasmine
This drama completely me shattered into a million tiny pieces in the best way possible.
First of all, I didn't get hooked onto it the first time. As someone who has watched the amount of dramas that I have, it's inevitable that I'm going to be particularly picky about what I devote my time to. Shamefacedly, I mistakenly came up with preconceptions of the drama based on the CGI in the first episode, thinking it was too fluffy and overly cutesy, and even cringeworthy. I thought it foreshadowed some equally as shallow a plot down the line, and never imagined it would present us with such a beautiful story. Good things take time to come, and you best believe that for this drama. Thank the lord I came back a second time and pushed through to step straight into the beautiful maelstrom that was to come.
From beginning to end, most of the actors portrayed their characters pretty well. Of course, extra credit will definitely have to go to our two main sweethearts, Jin Mi and Phoenix, as well as the broken antagonist, Run Yu. Never have I ever felt so much sorrow and empathy for an antagonist; when you can't help both wanting him dead for all that he's done, yet understanding fully well that for what he's been through, his actions are far from cruel and wholly justified, that's when you know this drama succeeded at producing a heart-wrenching antagonist. Don't even get me started on the two protagonists - their love has got to be the single most phenomenal thing this drama brought to life, and it is bound to make your own heart encounter every feeling that ever existed. It is quite literally set aflame by Phoenix's fire the entire time.
As you'd expect, the two protagonists experience huge mountains of obstacles that stand before them, as testaments to their love for one another. No, unlike many other dramas, there isn't just one single, blindingly obvious reason as to why they shouldn't be together. In actual fact, rather than any reasons per se, it's more like the two lovers EXPERIENCE too many misunderstandings and unfortunate events, which ultimately make it harder for the two to trust each other.
As for the storyline, it was masterfully crafted and pieced together in a very reasonable sequence of arcs; the flow of this story was exceptional on the grand scale of all dramas, which made it pretty easy to binge in 3 days. Most c dramas throw at you a hectic number of episodes, and 99% become tedious and burdened with too many desperate plot add-ons, which results in the drama itself losing sight of its initial goal ending with a rushed conclusion. Typically people (including myself) will start to give up around halfway through, unable to spend any more effort in learning how yet ANOTHER unnecessary plot twist will wreck everyone some more. But in AOL, the focus never leaves the main plot, while at the same time also allowing us to enjoy several side characters' stories that become flawlessly intertwined with the bigger story. Due to a certain plot hole you wouldn't understand now, our protagonist Jin Mi has a frustratingly overly happy-go-lucky nature, without much care for anything in the world. This results in the first chunk of the drama being predominantly comical and heartwarming. It is when she's able to slowly come out of that phase that the angst becomes all too real. The time she spends in the mortal realm with Phoenix is my favourite arc in the entire drama; as normal human beings who meet by the red string of fate, we are blessed with a Jin Mi who's truer to her heart, and a sauve Phoenix for king. Although the fight scenes are somewhat diminished by the underwhelming CGI, they're definitely convincing enough to get you by, and most importantly, lives are actually lost from them. I'd take that over countless fight scenes that focus on pretty cameos and melodramatic blood-spitting any day.
Another big concern in many Chinese dramas is the ending, as all too many times we've been left with tragedy and devastation; however, without revealing any spoilers, I can say that if you make it through all 63 episodes, the ending will be the most gratifying reward one could ever hope for. It is 100% worth all your tears that were shed leading up to that moment.
All in all, everyone must give Ashes of love a watch. On the rewatch scale, I know that this is one I will choose rewatch over and over again without a doubt. If you're prepared to go on a journey that's really a whirlwind of feels, angst, heartbreak, euphoria, and every other emotion - one that will take your breath away at every moment and never let you stop to take a break for air - then go right ahead. You certainly won't be left with any regrets.
First of all, I didn't get hooked onto it the first time. As someone who has watched the amount of dramas that I have, it's inevitable that I'm going to be particularly picky about what I devote my time to. Shamefacedly, I mistakenly came up with preconceptions of the drama based on the CGI in the first episode, thinking it was too fluffy and overly cutesy, and even cringeworthy. I thought it foreshadowed some equally as shallow a plot down the line, and never imagined it would present us with such a beautiful story. Good things take time to come, and you best believe that for this drama. Thank the lord I came back a second time and pushed through to step straight into the beautiful maelstrom that was to come.
From beginning to end, most of the actors portrayed their characters pretty well. Of course, extra credit will definitely have to go to our two main sweethearts, Jin Mi and Phoenix, as well as the broken antagonist, Run Yu. Never have I ever felt so much sorrow and empathy for an antagonist; when you can't help both wanting him dead for all that he's done, yet understanding fully well that for what he's been through, his actions are far from cruel and wholly justified, that's when you know this drama succeeded at producing a heart-wrenching antagonist. Don't even get me started on the two protagonists - their love has got to be the single most phenomenal thing this drama brought to life, and it is bound to make your own heart encounter every feeling that ever existed. It is quite literally set aflame by Phoenix's fire the entire time.
As you'd expect, the two protagonists experience huge mountains of obstacles that stand before them, as testaments to their love for one another. No, unlike many other dramas, there isn't just one single, blindingly obvious reason as to why they shouldn't be together. In actual fact, rather than any reasons per se, it's more like the two lovers EXPERIENCE too many misunderstandings and unfortunate events, which ultimately make it harder for the two to trust each other.
As for the storyline, it was masterfully crafted and pieced together in a very reasonable sequence of arcs; the flow of this story was exceptional on the grand scale of all dramas, which made it pretty easy to binge in 3 days. Most c dramas throw at you a hectic number of episodes, and 99% become tedious and burdened with too many desperate plot add-ons, which results in the drama itself losing sight of its initial goal ending with a rushed conclusion. Typically people (including myself) will start to give up around halfway through, unable to spend any more effort in learning how yet ANOTHER unnecessary plot twist will wreck everyone some more. But in AOL, the focus never leaves the main plot, while at the same time also allowing us to enjoy several side characters' stories that become flawlessly intertwined with the bigger story. Due to a certain plot hole you wouldn't understand now, our protagonist Jin Mi has a frustratingly overly happy-go-lucky nature, without much care for anything in the world. This results in the first chunk of the drama being predominantly comical and heartwarming. It is when she's able to slowly come out of that phase that the angst becomes all too real. The time she spends in the mortal realm with Phoenix is my favourite arc in the entire drama; as normal human beings who meet by the red string of fate, we are blessed with a Jin Mi who's truer to her heart, and a sauve Phoenix for king. Although the fight scenes are somewhat diminished by the underwhelming CGI, they're definitely convincing enough to get you by, and most importantly, lives are actually lost from them. I'd take that over countless fight scenes that focus on pretty cameos and melodramatic blood-spitting any day.
Another big concern in many Chinese dramas is the ending, as all too many times we've been left with tragedy and devastation; however, without revealing any spoilers, I can say that if you make it through all 63 episodes, the ending will be the most gratifying reward one could ever hope for. It is 100% worth all your tears that were shed leading up to that moment.
All in all, everyone must give Ashes of love a watch. On the rewatch scale, I know that this is one I will choose rewatch over and over again without a doubt. If you're prepared to go on a journey that's really a whirlwind of feels, angst, heartbreak, euphoria, and every other emotion - one that will take your breath away at every moment and never let you stop to take a break for air - then go right ahead. You certainly won't be left with any regrets.
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