sakie

I don't believe her full name was mentioned in the drama, and this is normal because people in the old days weren't allowed to address the empress/emperor/the ruler of China by their full name, only by their title or their reigning name.

As with you, I'm impressed as well, especially the visuals and color schemes. It's rich and warm with chinoiserie tones in a lot of grand scenes; and yet gray and sombre to show the dismal parts like scenes from the city's underbelly, the Unwelcome Well.

Yes, she's the Empress, aka, Wu Zetian.

History has Wu Zetian as a ruthless empress. As you can see early on in the drama, all the politicians in court were scared of her, and she didn't even have to raise her voice. This is because she was decisive and quick to sentence you to death. As this point of the drama, it was probably around 695 AD, so she was already a full fledge empress, ruling with the sole power and authority of an emperor, which meant, she pretty much was above all and only below "heaven." Since she was the rightful ruler under the mandate of heaven as per ancient Chinese philosophical concept, her subjects had to "save" her as you put it. That aside, if you do a half-a*s job, I don't think you'd survive in her court, especially when she has the secret police in place that allows anyone and everyone to denounce you slacking on the job. =)

In this drama, she's the long hair middle age lady who speaks with a low calm voice. Not sure what episode you're up to, but very early on, she gave SiYue a white jade object as a decree to investigate the informant issue.

Hahaha… you’re that lost? Post your questions of what’s stumping you, and some kind souls will help out.

I hear you. Same here. I pretty much gave all the major c-dramas since the Long ballad a tried, but they all sizzled out flat sadly.

As of ep. 4, no major physical injury. Mental state may be shakened.

Post your questions here in the forum and set the spoiler tag on if needed, and someone will answer it most likely. :) … or I’ll give it a try if I can. 😀

I laughed that the groom’s headpiece is askewed, showing how little Baili wanted to be there when he showed up at the bride’s front door.

No bromance so far up to ep 4, and I don’t believe there will be any at all in the drama. There may be a strong sense of camaraderie between the ML’s as the story unfolds.

Just finished episode 4.

I came across a post somewhere or maybe it was asked during the pre-show airing conference on whether Baili Hongyi has ADHD, and Wang Yibo responded “He does?” .

I’m beginning to suspect perhaps the character Baili is on the spectrum. He doesn’t smile much, very blunt with his words, always fidgets with wood pieces in his hands - especially when stressed (eg. When he was supposed to get dressed to get marrried, and a couple other times). Even his father insinuated that Baili won’t make it on his own given his distant personality, and that the casino owner stated that Baili is intelligent but she’s surprised that he’s getting married (as in, he lacks emotion to be in a relationship with a girl). So, maybe he’s a savant…

What is your opinion? ADHD or not?

Thanks for the info. Happy to know that Luoyang is beyond “very rare”on the scale. I’m pretty sure Wang yibo being in the series is a big attribute to the off the chart rating. 😀

I’m on the same page in term of watchable dramas this year: The Long Ballad, and most of the Rebel Princess. The rest got dropped.

Luoyang seems very promising after 2 episodes. Hope the momentum stays on track.

How does the heat index work? What is the scale range? First time hearing about the iQIYI heat index.

The director is rather skilled and avant garde with utilizing various camera speeds and angles to manipulate the viewers emotions, drawing out a sense of urgency, suspense, and excitement. We see this employed in the market scene in episode 1, with all the moving parts, and quick shots to indicate chaos is forthcoming.

When Baili Hongyi was introduced, I clearly remember that the camera angle was at 45 degree angle from the ground up, capturing his footsteps, a mysterious entrance and to indicate someone important in the drama. The view is like a panel from a manwah/manga.

There are so many great shots, including magnificent moving aerial views of the city. Overall, a great director in my book. He recently directed Jun Jiu Ling, and didn’t use the same effects. The director knows what he’s doing. Luoyang is a mystery/suspense drama and we the viewers are tossed in the midst of a race against time investigation. Hence, the fast pace camera effect.

I have to say though that some may find the quick moving angles dizzying if watched on a big screen because the eyes can only capture so much at once, quickly snapping left and right, up and down, and still having to read the subtitle. Sizing down the screen may help combat the dizziness.

Only watched 2 episodes so far, and looking forward to more this week.

Definitely watch now!!! The experience of the suspense and participating in the group/forum discussion as the episodes air is amazing! Especially if and when more participants share their point of views.

We don’t really know yet. Only up to 2 episodes out, unless you’re VIP status. Everyone seems to have an agenda so far. We do know that the mortician is looking for the person responsible for killing someone important to him.

It sounds like his real voice. I watched all the episodes of street dance of China that yibo was in ( s3 and s4), and recognize his voice by now.

The empress is based on a real historical figure, and you’re right that it was no easy feat getting to her position. She had an empress and consort executed to gain final total power, reigning as the only female sovereign in Chinese history, I believe.

I agree that all three leads are doing a great job holding their own. I haven’t watched Song Qian’s work, but she portrays the strong FL nicely.