This review may contain spoilers
Started off good, but that ending was...
It started off really good, but the ending was a disappointment. There was an inkling that the author and Miao Miao met in the real world since they gave us a clue regarding the bunny apple, but we didn't get to see them meet. If they were going to show us that Mu Sheng knew her from the real world, at least let them meet. I mean, give us an ending like Tiger and Rose.
Let's talk overall plot, it was an interesting concept, but it was uncommon. What I did enjoy about this is the love story between the four main leads. I did also feel that they spent way too much time in the capital, but I did enjoy the plot twist that they had regarding the Resentful Woman. It was an interesting take and it was unexpected.
Characters:
Mu Sheng - I really do love Ding Yu Xi. I actually started following him after Tiger and Rose and I have watched all of his dramas. His eyes can tell a thousand words. He can surely express his characters' emotions very well. Mu Sheng is a really lonely character and I am glad that he was able to learn about who he is and become a stronger person because of it. You can feel his loneliness at the beginning and you can feel his warmth after meeting Miao Miao. Ding Yu Xi did an amazing job portraying Mu Sheng. I really like his character arc and his growth.
Liang Miao Miao/Lin Yu - I like Ester Yu. I think that she did an amazing job with Liang Miao Miao/Lin Yu. Even though this is her comfort zone, I really do enjoy her work. She played three parts in this drama and they were all different from each other. We had the happy go lucky Liang Miao Miao then we got to see the evil Lin Yu (even though it was just for a few scenes), and then the Guardian from 900 years ago. I know that this is her comfort zone and she's comfortable with playing this type of characters, however, she brings a uniqueness to each and every single one of them.
Mu Yao - I do like Zhu Xu Dan as an actress and she portrayed Mu Yao very well. Her character was indifferent to demons and she didn't care if they were good or not. She just wanted them dead but then she grew to understand them and learned to accept that not all demons are evil. She had the biggest growth in the story. She went from someone who didn't care, to someone who realized that she, too, needed to learn that not all demons are as bad as what she grew up learning. The only thing that I didn't like about her was her loyalty to her father's legacy. I get that he was her father and she looked up to him as this hero, but as she learned more about him, I wished they would allow her to accept that her father was not perfect. Even when the Consort was telling her about her father, she refused to believe that he was anything about this hero.
Liu Fuyi - I really don't know the actor who played him, but I feel that Liu Fuyi was a bland character. He didn't do much in regards to the story plot. If he wasn't there, it wouldn't make a big difference to me. He was just the supporting character who is in love with Mu Yao. I feel like they added him to "melt" Mu Yao's heart but other than that, I don't really see his purpose. As for his growth, we didn't really see much of it. I mean, he did sacrifice himself to save Mu Yao in his village but then again, if he was gone, I didn't think it would make a difference. He was just there as a love interest to Mu Yao. He didn't do much in terms to the plot. So, with or without him, I didn't think it'll be any different.
Overall, I did enjoy the drama and I did also ffwd a lot of the scenes too. I feel that there were a lot of unnecessary scenes and I also feel that they cut off parts that were important and kept those weren't. For example, the bracelet. We have learned that it belonged to Mu Sheng's mother, but how can it possessed someone to love the first person they see? And did Miao Miao explain to Mu Sheng that it was because of the bracelet that's why she "fell" in love with his half-brother. AND, the biggest AND is how the heck did they all find out that he's the half brother. I mean, they didn't have a conversation about that. They just somehow magically found out that they were half brothers. I get that Mu Sheng knew because of the dream/nightmare sequence with the Consort but there was no other conversation after that. I get that they needed to cut parts out but like I said, they cut out the important parts. We didn't need to spend so much time on the consort nor on Luiniang and Fuyi's hometown. I feel that they spent too much time with those story arcs that they totally didn't explain anything about the bracelet and the brothers.
I rated it an 8.5 because even though I did enjoy it, I was not satisfied with the ending. I would have rate it higher if they pulled a Tiger and Rose scene where we actually get to see Miao Miao and Mu Sheng in the real world because it would have been the perfect ending. But they decided to pull a Romance on the Farm ending and so I took points away.
Let's talk overall plot, it was an interesting concept, but it was uncommon. What I did enjoy about this is the love story between the four main leads. I did also feel that they spent way too much time in the capital, but I did enjoy the plot twist that they had regarding the Resentful Woman. It was an interesting take and it was unexpected.
Characters:
Mu Sheng - I really do love Ding Yu Xi. I actually started following him after Tiger and Rose and I have watched all of his dramas. His eyes can tell a thousand words. He can surely express his characters' emotions very well. Mu Sheng is a really lonely character and I am glad that he was able to learn about who he is and become a stronger person because of it. You can feel his loneliness at the beginning and you can feel his warmth after meeting Miao Miao. Ding Yu Xi did an amazing job portraying Mu Sheng. I really like his character arc and his growth.
Liang Miao Miao/Lin Yu - I like Ester Yu. I think that she did an amazing job with Liang Miao Miao/Lin Yu. Even though this is her comfort zone, I really do enjoy her work. She played three parts in this drama and they were all different from each other. We had the happy go lucky Liang Miao Miao then we got to see the evil Lin Yu (even though it was just for a few scenes), and then the Guardian from 900 years ago. I know that this is her comfort zone and she's comfortable with playing this type of characters, however, she brings a uniqueness to each and every single one of them.
Mu Yao - I do like Zhu Xu Dan as an actress and she portrayed Mu Yao very well. Her character was indifferent to demons and she didn't care if they were good or not. She just wanted them dead but then she grew to understand them and learned to accept that not all demons are evil. She had the biggest growth in the story. She went from someone who didn't care, to someone who realized that she, too, needed to learn that not all demons are as bad as what she grew up learning. The only thing that I didn't like about her was her loyalty to her father's legacy. I get that he was her father and she looked up to him as this hero, but as she learned more about him, I wished they would allow her to accept that her father was not perfect. Even when the Consort was telling her about her father, she refused to believe that he was anything about this hero.
Liu Fuyi - I really don't know the actor who played him, but I feel that Liu Fuyi was a bland character. He didn't do much in regards to the story plot. If he wasn't there, it wouldn't make a big difference to me. He was just the supporting character who is in love with Mu Yao. I feel like they added him to "melt" Mu Yao's heart but other than that, I don't really see his purpose. As for his growth, we didn't really see much of it. I mean, he did sacrifice himself to save Mu Yao in his village but then again, if he was gone, I didn't think it would make a difference. He was just there as a love interest to Mu Yao. He didn't do much in terms to the plot. So, with or without him, I didn't think it'll be any different.
Overall, I did enjoy the drama and I did also ffwd a lot of the scenes too. I feel that there were a lot of unnecessary scenes and I also feel that they cut off parts that were important and kept those weren't. For example, the bracelet. We have learned that it belonged to Mu Sheng's mother, but how can it possessed someone to love the first person they see? And did Miao Miao explain to Mu Sheng that it was because of the bracelet that's why she "fell" in love with his half-brother. AND, the biggest AND is how the heck did they all find out that he's the half brother. I mean, they didn't have a conversation about that. They just somehow magically found out that they were half brothers. I get that Mu Sheng knew because of the dream/nightmare sequence with the Consort but there was no other conversation after that. I get that they needed to cut parts out but like I said, they cut out the important parts. We didn't need to spend so much time on the consort nor on Luiniang and Fuyi's hometown. I feel that they spent too much time with those story arcs that they totally didn't explain anything about the bracelet and the brothers.
I rated it an 8.5 because even though I did enjoy it, I was not satisfied with the ending. I would have rate it higher if they pulled a Tiger and Rose scene where we actually get to see Miao Miao and Mu Sheng in the real world because it would have been the perfect ending. But they decided to pull a Romance on the Farm ending and so I took points away.
Was this review helpful to you?