unbeliebubble

NO SPOILER Miss detective wants to take the lead. Beware of unrequited lovers from second arc.

The story : Two people who hate each other are forced to get married. And to work together to solve cases.
As they do, they are gradually drawn to one another. Will love or hate wins ?

Pros:
- Strong clever detective Female Lead.
- Strong clever military Male Lead.
- It is the first time I have seen a heroine, daughter of a concubine, who is loved by her entire family and not bullied. Not a cliché. Yes (*_*)
- Chemistry is fire and the settings make it even more beautiful to watch.
- Characterisation is outstanding for Male Lead (Ding Yu Xi) who looks very manly as the great Shen Du.
- The inquiry is very good. Complex and involving many people. I try to guess the outcome as it progresses but I have a hard time doing so.
- Comedy is just great between the leads. I hope they had more comedic scenes.
- Cinematography is great.
- Action scenes are worth watching. There are few but when performed, OMG they blew my mind. Especially with Male Lead. I am still in shock (*_*)
- Overall the story is good and entertaining.


Cons:
- The mystery unfolds piece by piece and it can disturb some viewers. But like in Agatha Christie's novels, you end-up getting the answer.
- Misunderstandings (who is Male Lead, who is Female Lead, what they do on their own...).
Sometimes they don't communicate enough.
- I don't like childish Female voice dubbing. Guess what ? The Female Lead's best friend has one. *sight*
- Female Lead is not perfect, her many flaws could spoil your fun.
- Lots of unrequited lovers from the second arc for almost every cast member. This should be titled "conspiracy in love island" o_O

Overall :
I like the investigation and the romance.
The investigation was very complex, a lot of clues were shown to give hints in order to know who the main antagonist is. So by paying attention to the early episodes you migt be able to decypher who it is.
The bickering romance was enjoyable generally speacking. You have to stand FL's temper sometimes but at the end the love story is beautiful and Shen Du is the bright light in this show. He carries it like the titan atlas who do with the heavens. He is just marvellous. Special mention to Yan Xing who stayed witty till the very end. And that's great for a female lead.
This is a good drama. So I recommend it if you like case solving duo with strong Leads. You might like it.

And the OST is great.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLjFuY9p48E

Leia Mais

NO SPOILERS . Is it stockholm syndrom or can love bloom from overcoming hardship together?

The story : On his quest for revenge, Wei Zhao crosses paths with Jiang Ci, who spoils every plans he makes.
However, getting to know each other they are drawn to one another.

First of all, when I saw how Male Lead treated Female Lead, I could not help but wondering if Female Lead suffered from stockholm syndrom ? How can she fall for someone who harmed her like that ?
Then, as the story progressed I understood that those two share a special / unspeakable bond.
They managed to find love and had a great chemistry in the middle of such dire situations. And this, in it-self is a challenge.
ML and FL still brought me with them as I witnessed their slowburn romance, full of attraction, riddles, subtile messages, amorous glares...
So as much as I was shocked by ML at first and also feared for FL's life, I was rooting for Wei Zhao and Jiang Ci's love in the end.

Pros :
- Smart countryside Female Lead .
- Smart high ranking court officer, Male Lead.
- Good action scenes.
- Mortal Enemies to lovers trope. Male Lead's killing spree goes far, as he is aiming at Female Lead and that's surprising.
- Great acting.
- Great revenge quest for the hero whose kingdom's population was slaughtered and enslaved.
- The plot is complex. That's a good thing because it is promising and can surprise the viewer. At times your blood might boil for witnessing injustices. But this is proof of a good story.
- Very emotional topics are dealt with : genocide, slavery, fight for survival, conspiracy, rebellion, human trafficking...
- Sprinkle of romance, which I think is great because the emotional and political story make the romance more endearing.
- Well written script filled with symbolism and duality (every plot point faces its opposite) : slavery/freedom, conceal /show, belitteling/praising... So you can have different level of understanding of the narrative because the writer thinks that you are smart enough to piece them together. I like that.

Cons :
- As the drama aired, I thought is was one of the last performances of Jeremy Tsui as a Second Male Lead before retirement. I was sad ?! And hope to see him again. Good news, he is coming back to acting. My wish was granted, I am very happy. He is such a great actor.
- Sadistic assassin Male Lead who supresses his emotions and live like a machine. That's a Red Flag.
- There are some glitches in the CGI. For example here : they stopped the CGI before finishing the scene (^_^) I laughed so much o_O
Are they saving money on CGI budget ? This is weird to see the raw images with subtitles.
https://postimg.cc/Z0WqXVqy


Overall this is a good show : I laughed, I was afraid, relieved... until the very last minutes. The ending was a climax.

It was the most satisfying ending to me, it did justice to the drama and it was also very realistic. I could always dream of a season 2 with an alternate ending that would have sparked even more conspiracies than this one. But the writers did justice to the story of a hero. And I liked it.

Highly rewatchable because there is hidden meaning everywhere, you will discover new clues and symbols at every rewatch.
If you like enemies to lovers stories with intelligent leads, this is for you.


The songs of the OST fit the story perfectly : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PngeJrUTSVo

Leia Mais

NO SPOILER - Is it physical attraction or is it real love connection?

Watching this drama I wondered if sexual tension could ignate real love connections ?

The story : Amidst chaotic political struggle of 3 cities, the most beautiful woman of the desert, gets involved with 3 Influencial men.

Well... This drama is not a slowburn romance like I thought. It is more a story about infatuation with a sprinkle of toxic romance in an unstable desert, where a power struggle is happening.
The main characters begin their journey with sexual tension that develop into something else, as the drama progresses. Intimacy is a big topic of the plot. There is a lot of sexual harrassment as well. Especially in the first half of the drama.
Indeed, in this savage desert, the women's sexuality is a bargaining ship. It can be exchanged as a payment or as a reward for victory. Meanwhile, the rapists are glamorized. So I would say that sex is emphasized more than romance in this drama, at least in the first half.
This is why the dare, here, is to transend the physical attraction into real romantic love while fighting the power stuggles in the desert.

Would this be doable? Indeed, it is, if we take psychology in account.
The "shaking bridge effect" is a psychological effect that can fake attractivness.
Because, a dangerous situation can make people mistake their own physiological sensations for love.
So, being in a life or death situation can arouse them and lead them to desire each other.
ML and FL entanglement is believable and very well enacted in my opinion.


Pros :
- FL is a witty and gifted princess.
- ML is a mysterious city lord/ chief BOA (intelligence service) of the desert.
- Chemistry is good between all the couples. Some MLs know how to bed FLs.
- Acting is wonderful. my favs are FL, Hankiz Omar, who is doing a great job as a cold and proud princess, and Alen Fang who is great as a resourceful chief of spies.
- Great cinematography. The setting is gorgeous. The desert scene were filmed in Gobi desert. It is a feast for the eyes.
- The pacing is quick in the beginning.
- Some scenes are very theatrical. Sometimes it was like watching "Ottelo", "Carmen" other times "Romeo and juliet" or "The phantom of the opera".

Cons:
- The exposition scenes last a lot before the real plot starts.
- Rape culture. Some would say that it takes place in ancient times and they will excuse the multiple men who want to constantly rape the female leads. But I don't agree. This is just annoying to me because it is so repetitive.
- The physical attraction from the start could jeopardize the deep romance. Was it believable? Yes it was and the acting was on point.
- SML and SFL are not complex characters. They are basically like desert Bonnie and Clyde.
- Pacing was a little slow at the beginning but improved after 5 episodes.

Overall:
I was captivated by this drama. This barbaric desert is the worst place to be, especially for a woman like Bei Shuang.
But she is so clever, that she still managed to pursue her goals and it was a bliss to watch her use her wits to outmatch every antagonist.
I had a hard time with the second couple, all their actions was just so annoying or disgusting to me. You'll see what I mean, when you watch the drama. But, I could understand that some people turn like that, in a violent place like this ruthless desert. However, the SFL remains a mystery to me. How can she be a princess and act so wildly and in such a disgusting way. What about the filial piety and the etiquette that every royal should have been tought since childhood? Once again, you will know what I mean as you watch the show. You might went to drop it at some point, because of the second couple but I assure you, this is a great story worth watching.
Even if, at the end I had few doubt about how the antagonists were punished for their misdeeds.
I recommend this drama if you like beautiful epic romance, full of commitments and sacrifices.
Indeed, the fact that it is not a slowburn romance doesn't disturb me. I am a fan of the Lead's love story.

Leia Mais

I Liked this drama. A journey to a happy ending (explained)

A revenge plot with a single inside man.
The drama narrates the story of Prince Jing He (MRJH) whose army was killed alongside 100.000 civilians in the Qinzhou Great arson. In order to take revenge, MRJH decides to train the female assassin, Mei Lin (ML). She will be tasked of the killing of MRJH.

For the readers, who wanted to watch the re-enactement of the novel : bad news. The drama diverges completely from the novel. MRJH does not rape Mei Lin and all the questionnable actions he did in the book wasn't included in the drama. In my opinion, this is a good thing because, this way MRJH is redeemable and can be loved by the viewers and acces a happy ending.

The pros :

- The violent encounter of 2 strong leads:
I liked that the story started with Prince Jing as an anti-hero paired with a strong female assassin. The first 3 episodes were breath taking. And that sadomasochistic scene in the pool was the climax of this encounter.
Because behind all the stabbing and the stranggeling, I could see Prince Jing's attraction for Mei Lin and her relentlessness.
The acting is that good, that LXY and WJY was able to convey two emotions at the same time; wrath and attraction.

- The character development psychologically believable :
I was even more seduced by the drama when I witnessed Prince Jing's development.
From a cold and frightening "master of shadow works " who had to supress his emotions to survive killing attempts.
He is now, slowly openning up his heart to love thanks to Mei Lin.
Love blooms without him knowing it. And that's marvellous and poetic.
From the moment the hidden message of his mother freed him from resentment. He started to open up his heart to love. And this is beautiful.

- The forshadowing of the happy ending during the all show :
I believe in an happy ending. The undying flower is a very important element of the plot. It is showcased in the opening credit several times. More than a symbol of resilience and strength. The leads talk about their next life all the time. More than that, MRJH and ML almost died several times during the show. This was done to prepare the viewers to see their next life via reincarnation. Now that we know that. It is not difficult to see that the last scenes of the drama, tell the viewers that they were reborn and meet again in a different time and space.

- The beautiful visuals :
The aesthetics of the show, it is just gorgeous. The colours, costumes, make-up. Everything is beautiful.

- Great acting and directing :
LXY (MRJH) and WJY (ML) are giving us such great performances. That those characters are alive thanks to their talents. The rest of the cast is great too. And the camera moves are very good.
BWJ (Prince YQ) was excellent. He managed to portray this cunning and tormented character amazingly. The audience either hated him or pitied him.
BC (Crown Prince MRXL) was excellent, at times I couldn't stand the sight of him. So brilliant.

- Flavor of a BL couple Su Muo and Yin Que:
YQ and Su Muo : One of the few times YQ was really patient and loving. I heard some people saying that they had the vibe of a BL couple. I did felt the kindness of each of them toward the other. I felt the genuine love and admiration Su Muo has for YQ. But, Su Muo still lost his life to make sure the love story of his master could leave the dream stage to become a reality. This couple has no status and no real "lovers" feelings. A marriage would be impossible. But the sweetness of their interaction lingers.

- The duality :
There is a duality between : what is seen as the truth on the surface, and what really happens behind closed doors.
MRJH has multiple personalities : "The playboy", "The Master of Shadow Works", and the mischievous MRJH.
All of these personalities are regarded as dark and hard to deal with. Whereas his quest is virteous and he acts for the greater good.
Prince YQ on the contrary is a dignified heir of Xiyan state, best friend of the emperor and benevolent before every one. Whereas, he colludes with CP Murong XuanLie and tries the frame MRJH from the multiple murder of 10 Xiyan beauties.

- Fighting scenes :
Mei Lin is such a badass. All her fighting scenes were amazing. I only regret not seeing more of Luo Mei's martial arts skills during the drama. Generally speaking all the battle was great. They even add CGI sometimes, and that's for the best.

- Yin Que, more of an antagonist than a Second Male Lead :
Yin Que was always cunning and he lied when is vowed to give to Mei Lin the freedom of choice. I spotted his dark personality from the very beginning and I was waiting for him to show his true colours.
He is not an average SML with an unrequited love for the FL.
He is cunning and evil. Moreover, Mei Lin doesn't even have a clue of his obsession for her. He is more of a powerful antagonist to me, who does all is misdeeds without anyone knowing it.

- The symbolism and foreshadowing of a married life :
This is role playing time at Jeinbei: MRJH is a lustful playboy and Mei Lin is a lethal "femme fatal".
In this white troubled water pool, after Mei Lin, (very seductress) told Prince Jing that she just wanted him.
The latter pierced her throat with her own hairpin. The same hairpin she wanted to use to assassinate him. Suddenly a drop of blood fell in the water.
Like the virginal blood falls on the « proof of virginity » on the wedding night.
We had there a hint (through this symbol) of the marriage between the two.
MRJH's hint is delicious :
« Bleeding should be on the wedding night in ZhaoJing »
This foreshadowing of their wedding amazed me :)

- Mei Lin Must not die, a promise to her moribund father :
While exfiltrating her from the fire, her father tells « Live, You must live well! »
This represent a promise done to her dying father and we know how important are moribund's last wish for the ones they left behind.
This is why Mei Lin kept repeating it. She respected her dying father's last wish. "She must live".

The con :

- The unfair death of Crown Prince Murong Xuanlie :
His death was too peaceful. CP was a criminal against humanity with more than 100.000 casualties. This is not fair that he died drinking wedding wine with Luo Mei, his wife-to-be. It is even annoying. Easthetically the scene is beautiful, but how annoying it is.
I was so pissed. But like in real life. People with higher mobility don't face the same justice *sigh*
And unfotunately, this is cast-iron truth.
Thinking about it, I think that, this is the message the writers wanted to convey.

- The disgusting romance between the Old Emperor and the Teenaged Consort Yan :
I know that it is historically accurate but I don't want to see it. They at least avoided the kisses and the two were never together in the same frame with longing glares at each other. I am thankful for that. At least they spared us.

- The destruction of a great Female General Luo Mei:
I was first amazed by the righteousness and the strength of Luo Mei. And I had high hopes for her character to bloom in this drama. Unfortunately, even if I understood that beeing rejected by the love of her life demolished her spirit. I was disappointed when I saw her willingly surrender to the so-called love of the main antagonist, the Crown Prince Murong XuanLie. It was almost inconsistent. How could she, out of the blue, fall so deeply in love with that murderer. Mystery o_O

- Not enough sexual tension :
I would have liked the sexual tension and the push and pull to last more that 3 episodes. Although I loved the chemistry of the Leads. The great sadomasochistic start fell short on that aspect. And that's unfortunate.

- Side stories :
The side stories are almost non existing. Too bad, this would add to the quality of the plot. Big guy could have had a story of his own. I would have liked to see his romance.

The ending :
On Episode 1 we saw that, as soon as Mei Lin appears asleeped and her father saves her, she wears the same outfit she wore in the happy ending sequence. We also see the Weibei army and Qingzhoun in fire.
Wich means that it is really their story that begins again in the ending of the show.

The drama ends with a happy ending. After all the hints about rebirth in the credit song, the allusion to their next life during the conversations of MRJH and ML. We see the Lead Couple together when snow starts to fall. And we know that the "Momai Poison" in them can be cured by the ''Snow dragon whisker seed" that blooms only in the snow. Now the snow is falling and the two of them are alive. We did not see anybody dying. This tells me that, they might have send people to harvest the Dragon Flower and cure themself.

Then jump in time. The color palette is yellow-ish. This indicates another reality. MRJH and ML are younger. There is no war in Qingzhou. They meet in a happy time when they are younger. And those who died in the previous paralell world are alive in this world.

This is the next life MRJH and ML spoke about so many time during the drama. They meet and fall in love on the spot. This is the happy ending.
Then the drama announces "The End"

Then jump to 15 years after that snowfall. MRJH is alone. And we understand that ML has died during this period. We don't know when. MRJH dies looking at the red fruit tree and dropping her hair pin. The color palette is blue-ish.
The maid servant refers to Mei Lin calling her the Empress. It means that Mei Lin survived at least 5 years until MRJH's coronation as Emperor. She was crowned Empress and received the decree while she was alive, because the only title that can be bestowed posthumously is the title of Dowager. So Mei Lin was alive at the Emperor's coronation. She might have died during MRJH's reign between 5 years to 15 years after the first snow. Consequently they lived a married life after their marriage for at least 5 years being Prince and Princess and then they became Emperor and Empress.

I have the impression they gave viewer a happy ending followed by a bittersweet/ kind of happy ending to please everybody. So there is 2 endings.

Overall :

I really liked this drama. I was moved by the endearing relationship of the Leads.
From the violence of a dark encounter to the beauty of love after healing from the past. Moreover, the drama is very satisfaying visually. I recommend this drama if you understand the concept of past life and you want to follow the epic love story of this couple to there next life, this drama is for you.

PS : I know that some viewers felt discouraged by the lack of sadomasochistic and gore scenes in this drama.
But, let's just be honest. Do you really think a S+ drama would feature : BDSM, gore and the sadistic MRJH's actions like the novel did? .... Really

Leia Mais

Goofy Superwoman. I LOVE IT

This drama narrates the story of a female medical doctor who is transported back in times in the body of the ugly and despised Consort Chu. She is married to Prince Chu who hates her to the core and bullies her as much as he can. Will she survive?

Well ...When I stepped foot in this drama, the acting, pacing, setting, accessories... Everything was so over the top and it was so funny that I could not stop watching. At the time, the rating was arround 6.0 and now as I am writing this review, it reached 7.1. and it is going up.

Pros: Female Lead (Amy Sun) is such a great character. I love her in everything she does. She is a great Medical Doctor / Coroner/ Detective.... She is so gifted that she could rule the world if she had to.
On the contrary, Male Lead ( Wang Ting Wu) is oblivious to a lot of things and forced to obey a lot of rules, obstructing him in a lot of ways.
We would say opposites attract? And it is. Those two can't stop bickering, but it is so funny to watch.
The story is so wacky and entertaining that I like it more and more.
The music is good, like in a long drama.
Male Lead has a beautiful character development.
The villainess is very very entertaining.

Cons: The acting of some characters and the logic of the plot are sometimes lacking. For example : How could Female Lead operate a patient without cleaning her hand etc...
But, all this is done in such a comedic way that, it is easily acceptable because the drama is so crazy and funny.

Overall the plot is good and I am enjoying the show.
The cast members are very funny. I have alredy re-watched this show several times. And it always puts a smile on my face. I hope it does the same to you.
I liked the ending.

I recommend it if you like goofy dramas. Then this is for you.

Leia Mais

Mr and Mrs SMITH - Not the average : "travel into the world of the VR game " trope.

The story: FL & ML are 2 badasses rival business investors In Real Life. They got trapped in a Virtual Reality Game. And their mission is to eliminate each other basically. FL is team SML , she must eliminate ML and ML goes against SML. How is it going to end up?

Like for Mr and Mrs SMITH, the leads have a strong opposition. And good news, this is not the average : "travel into the world of the VR game " trope.

Well... Bravo to the writers of this mini drama and also to all the cast and crew because they never seize to surprise me throughout the whole show. Of course, there were some clichés and tropes but some of them were criticized and ridiculed by the Leads themself. Make it a fun and caricatural watch and frankly I never got borred. Sometimes I guessed were the story was heading but there was always some surprising elements that kept me hoocked. This drama was the only salvation from a drama slump, and I am grateful for that.
Although the Leads are surrounded BY NPC (Non Player Characters). They still treat them as real humain beings who struggle in their mission and build their life choices after choices ; actions after actions. I liked this existensialist approach of what human beings are. This is also why I loved the way ML and FL respected the NPC's lifes and decisions. At some point we viewers forget that those NPC are just lines of codes because the heroes treat them as equals. It was beautiful.


Pros :
- Ruthless and badass FL .
- Smart and cunning ML.
- FL is like an anti heroine, and ML is also an anti hero.

- Good side characters and good side stories as well. That's a plus.
- Good CGI.
- No stupid Breakup.
- Multi dimensional characters and this is delightful to watch. All the characters have a back story that can explain why they are the way they are. Positive or negative, This adds a human touch and makes their struggles more real.
- Character development for almost all the characters. A breath of fresh air. Everybody finds his purpose and everybody find solace in something they value in this drama. So this is another good point that makes it more enjoyable.
- The OST is really gorgeous.
- Good morals.
- Cinematography, acting, costumes, makeup, hairstyle... Everything was well crafted.

Cons:
- The grand mother's wig looks so fake. *Laughing*
- In the middle of the drama, the pacing was slower. But this is not really a flaw, considering that it was the psychological war between ML and FL in accepting that they love each other. It was totally normal to slow down the pacing.
- The business talks could have been better. But I am nitpicking. This show was so well crafted. I have difficulties finding flaws.
- Kisses are not so great, although chemistry is fine.

Overall:
This is one of the best mini dramas I watched to date. It was very entertaining and I was addicted to it as it aired.
The two heroes are equally strong and their battles of wits were the most enjoyable to me.

So, if you like strong characters and enemies to loves tropes with a sprinkle of thought provoking questions like : what is really a humain being ? Is he the sum of his actions or is he defined by his pre-existing essence ?
You might like this drama as much as I did.

Happy watching. (>_^)

Leia Mais

Started like a spy movie. Ended up like a romance with the vibe of an oldschool Harlequin Novels.

An heiress travels to a tropical banana republic to look for her missing brother. On her way she gets involved with a bodyguard who becomes her husband on the very day they meet.

To be honest I watched this drama because of the cast and the setting. It was refreshing to see such beautiful setting in a mini drama. Any scene in this tropical forest would be romantic. It was a feast for the eyes.
This drama also gives a oldschool vibe. It reminds me of those drama I watched when I was little. With those great heroines lost in a savage land and struggling to survive and make justice. I liked that feeling.
The main trump card of this drama is Dai Gao Zheng. He is shining brighter than anyone here. FL is cute though.

Pros:
- Dai Gao Zheng is very handsome and manly as a bodyguard.
- Zheng Miao is cute and charming as a sassy heiress.
- Amazing settings. This forest make the romantic level of the show explode.
- Acting is good.
- Fighting scenes were good. They managed to use believable accesories ( sticks and batons were not folding on impact , so good point) and the stuntmen did a great job.
- Harlequin romance oldschool vibe.
- The pacing was fast and a lot of twist and turns in the plot. So I was never bored.
- Great characterization. The costumes, make-up, hairstyle ... Everything was beautiful.
- Good morals : the antagonists face retribution. And the heroes know the value of forgiveness.

Cons:
- Full of tropes and clichés but beautifully executed nevertheless.
- The gullible Female Lead trope as always. It can spoil your fun.
- No character development in this drama generally speaking. Except for the Second Female Lead.
- Stupid breakup trope. Why again! Frankly, after all this turmoil during all the show, the writer could have saved it. The main couple went through so much in all the show. That break up is too much in my views.
- Amnesia trope... No really?
- Starts like an an action / spy drama and becomes a romance. But they kept some action scenes though. So that's good. I would have liked more.


Overall :
I liked it and it was a peaceful and easy watch. I felt that something was missing and I don't know what. But still appreciated it.
I recommend it if you like romantic sagas in beautiful setting with an oldschool touch.

Leia Mais

Rollercoaster ride of emotions.

The story: The surviving daughter of the Lin family comes back to seek revenge, after her parents death.

When I set foot on this drama I was mesmerized by the cast, the cinematography, back ground music and the acting. I immediately understood that this drama would be great to watch. Although the story starts in a very simple way we often see. This drama turns the avenging FL's plot to another level.
The Chemistry is off the charts and the love scenes between ML and FL was breathtaking. I could just blush seeing them getting close. And then We had some violent scenes following those sweet moments, make it a rollercoaster ride to watch.
So you have to buckle up because, like a lot of Chinese republican dramas, the world is full of dangers and the characters a subjected to them.
This drama also made me cry and I have to give them a good point for that. I was so into the story that I actually felt very bad for the characters.
I really liked the story of this bullied ML, whose resillience lead him to finally get justice. He reminded me of "The Count of Monte Cristo". Like him, Zhang Han Yi's patience and perseverance underline the idea that justice, although delayed, ultimately triumphs.
This drama was really a treat to me and despite having to close my eyes before the graphic violence at time, I enjoyed every bit of it.

Pros :
- Amazing Strategist FL and amazing genius incense master ML.
- Great witty and intelligent leads.
- The chemistry is top notch between the leads and also between the genereral and his sister.
- Belivable kiss scene. Frankly I was very happy the actors could deliver.
- The acting is great.
- Top notch quality : great directing and cinematography, acting, costumes hair and makeup...
- Surprising twist and turns. Some characters actions are very unique. I so them cross taboos in this show. (*_*)
- Like in all Republican Era dramas. Anything can happen, I mean really anything.
- Strategies and mind games were great to watch to me.
- Morals are good.


Cons :
- Graphic violence .
- The ending was justified but I would have liked another one.
- Stunt accesories and special effects makeup could have been handled differently.

Overall:
If you like a drama with great chemistry, a story that has a lot of twist and turns, with top notch technical quality and you can beare with some graphic violent scenes. This drama is for you.

Leia Mais

Avenging your past self from a swindler is entertaining.

What would you do if your past self, whose failed marriage ended up with your own demise (financially and physically), was coming to meet you 7 years in the past as a man? This is the topic of this revenge drama. Would you trust a stranger who says he is you?

This drama is entertaining and sometimes goofy. The Female Lead is on the way to her own death and Male Lead has to save her, because he is her past self in disguise. I laughed a lot and I also was angry a lot watching this drama.

On a serious note, This drama asks the question about regret in life.
What if we could make up for our regretted actions. Would our life be better or worse? Is there a butterfly effect?
I take this drama for a beacon of hope at what life could be if the good choices are made. I loved to follow the steps of Gu Nian ( past-self and future-self ) struggling through all the contradictions of her persona. Would you take a road if you knew it was leading to your demise? Get ready to challenge your own understanding with this drama.


Pros :
- Strong and badass Female Lead and Male Lead.
- Good acting : First time I see Luo Zheng sensitive like that in a gender swapping role. I like it.
- Fast pacing .
- Goofy moments.
- I like the OST.
- Sismance and Bromance.
- This plot could go further to a long drama. I could see FL drifting into parallel spaces :)

Cons:
- The actress seems anorexic to me, FL is supposed to be a skinny tomboy. This is really it. I am afraid for her when I see her.
- Female Lead is annoying sometimes. She is so stubborn, it is almost unbearable.
- Time travel logic inaccurency throughout the second half of the show. If what we see is FL's real life experience. If all of this pure virtual reality, then it is totally logical and that would be a good point.
- The ending is great but some elements feel logically off. I still like the drama. So don't relate too much to the logic to appreciate this drama. So weird.Someone is born out of thin air.

Overall:
I like everything in this drama. The flaws are minors. The plot is well executed. I am annoyed because Female Lead is so stubborn. But I enjoy the show and I recommend it if you like revenge dramas with badass Female Lead.


The ending explained. SPOILER BELOW
Do not read if you have not watched the drama yet.
Or if you don't want to know the ending.

⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️⋆·˚ ༘ *
















⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️💣💥⋆·˚ ༘ *⚠️⋆·˚ ༘ *
The ending explained, in case it feels weird to you like it felt to me. I pledged not to spoil dramas, but this ending puzzled me too much. So I wanted to decypher it for those who, like me, were lost at the end of the drama.

Indeed, the last 4 episodes were supposed to be her going back to reality and trying to look after DouDou. So as usual, her subborness got in the way. Which logically leads to trouble followed by a happy ending with ML.

But, thinking about it more, given that at the end DouDou wasn't dead anymore.
I think that, the whole thing was her watching a vitual reality plot while she was dying on her hospital bed after she tried to commit suicide on episode 1.

Based on that, I would withdraw what a previously said, that the time travel logic was off . And I would say that the plot is very well crafted. It allowed ML to be with her but only through the game's interface.
Because she reunites with DouDou because she cannot stand to live without her. Even if in the (virtual) life she relived. DouDou was never conceived.

Leia Mais

NO SPOILER "Till the end of the moon" as a low budget drama - I enjoyed it

If you wanted to know what would look like "Till the end of the moon" as a low budget short-length drama ? There you have it. I enjoyed it though.
The story : On the day of her wedding, the immortal Shang You survives the massacre of her entire clan by Si Yuan, the Dark Lord of the Underworld. To seek revenge, Shang You disguises herself as Meng Li and infiltrates the underworld...

The main topic of this drama is a revenge during which the heroine tries to save her loved ones and redeemed herself. Like in real life, the road to happiness is not a peaceful road and she will have to suffer setbacks and learn about herself before knowing the truth. Just because of that, this drama is worth watching.

The story is narrated on several lifetimes during which the heroine is trying to uncover the mystery of the annihilation of her clan. Even if the plot is simple, I was still interested in knowing the end of the story. Once I recognize the main elements of TTEOTM, I wanted to know exactly what version the cast and crew were going to present.
I was satisfied with what they came up with. It was entertaining, I even cried at a particular moment. And that surprised me. It was nice watching this drama.

Pros :
- I liked that it ressembles so much to "Till the end of the moon". You will recognize, who is Ye Bing Chang, Tan tai Jin, Li Su Su, Xiao Lin, Pian Ran, ADG, Di Mian, Qu Xuan Zi, the Fleeting Life/Bo're Dream ...
- I liked the way Female Lead approaches and seduces Male Lead.
- Liked the way the emotionless ML slowly learns what is love, as Shang You seduces him.
- Good chemistry between the lead.
- Appreciated the acting.
- I liked how the Sect head master is moving. It is like he is dancing. I saw him "pop & lock" like a Hip-Hop dancer. It made me smile.

Cons :
- Simple plot.
- Male Lead is expressionless for a longtime during the first and second arc.
- The CGI goes with the budget. It is not top notch, but I wasn't so disturbed about it.
- Main antagonist is one-dimensionnal.

Overall:
Simple but cute story with Xianxia elements and good chemistry between the lead.
I liked the ending. It would be the ending I would have wanted for TTEOTM. Here I got it and I was happy.
If you like Xianxia love story taking place during several lifetimes with a satisfying ending.
This drama is made for you.

Leia Mais

When the lady is a man. The flavor of a BL drama.

The plot is simple : a modern womanizer travels back in time to find himself in the body of the 4th young lady of the marquis's mansion. Now what? Evidently the struggle is for him, to find his way back to modern times.

Big problem : this lady has a male thinking voice. So I was confused to see her getting closer and closer to Male Lead. How could a womanizer get seduced by a man just because he traveled back in time and he is kept inside a woman's body? Will they kiss? Will they consummate their marriage? Is it BL?
To me this plot point seems totally unlogical . So I decided to wait until the last episode to get the answer to all those questions.

On another note.
The plot is well written and there is a lot of twists and turns to this story. I never felt bored and I liked to follow the steps of Female Lead, where ever she was going to, in order to complete her tasks.
The entire cast was good and I liked their performances.

Generally speaking I would recommend this drama because it was very entertaining.

Leia Mais

Apparent default of consent in a good quality forbidden love story.

Story: The poor teacher Zhao Xing Rou falls for the rich warlord Yi Qiu Ting. All seems to be going well until the Male Leads family knows about it.

This is a beautiful and high quality drama. I started watching it and I appreciated it. However the use of violence by the domineering warlord Male Lead to stay with the teacher Female Lead was sometimes hard to stand.
Although I understand that the two of them love each other so basically they would like to remain together. Circumstances make that hard to happen and Male Lead domineering as he is, used all his power to stay with his beloved at any cost, despite their family wishes and even Female Lead's requests at some point.
This is why I was not so happy about seeing him forcing her. But the story line was great and I could understand the dangers they had to face together so I kept watching.
However, When I saw how later in the show, Female Lead behaves toward Male Lead . That was too much for me. She became despicable and to me they destroyed her persona.

But to be fair the drama is beautiful and as much as I was annoyed about those two forcing themself onto each other. It was still a visually beautiful watch.

The plot is simple soI will not indulge in descriptions. I liked everything in this drama except the last part when Female Lead retaliates. She could have done it in a different way.

The two Second Male Leads have what looks like an hidden BL romance.

So, if it doesn't disturb you to see Male Lead forcefully bed Female Lead all the time. Despite her being in love with him. You could appreciate this drama.


Pros :
- Great cinematography and good quality mini drama.
- Good story.
- Fighting scenes are well shot and executed.
- Great acting. They managed to make me cry at some point.
- BL so-called bromance between the two Sooecond Male Lead.
- Fast pacing was pleasing.
- Great character development for Male Lead and Female Lead. They others stay pretty much the same.


Cons :
- Forced love : Male Lead forcefully bedding Female Lead is a little disturbing. Despite the fact that we know that she is in love with him. Is it or not a defaut of consent. I let you judge of that. I don't say more not to spoil.
- A lot of twists and turns, despite the general storyline being simple.

Overall : It woths the watch because of the quality of the drama and the retribution at the end.
I could only recommend this drama if you understand the concept of forbidden love. And Male Lead forcefully bedding Female Lead doesnt shock you.
Watching the drama I understood why Male Lead did all he did and I also understood why Female Lead never really tried to escape him.

Leia Mais

Great basis for a long length drama with fluffy romance and supernatural creature.

Story : Betrayed by her lover in her past life. A female taoist captures a clueless fairy in order to deliver him, in exchange for the secret of her past treason. But she feels gradually drawn to her prey. Will she let him go?

This storyline is very simple so I will not indulge in explaination about the plot.
This drama is a cute and easy watch narrating the love story between a green flag male Lead and a wanna be villainness but cute and sassy Female Lead. Their quest is adventurous and there are several moments in wich the sparks are flying in the sweetest way.

This drama is not perfect but it can definitly be a great basis for an epict story in a long length drama. I would watch this love story for sure.

Pros :
Green Flag ML.
Green Flag wanna be Red flag FL who previously wants to capture ML and sell him. But love gets in the way.
I like the ending.
Good morals.
CGI was OK for the budget.
Good comedy.

Cons:
Low budget drama.
Special effects.

Overall :
This is an easy watch and happy pill for those who like interspecies fluffy romances during an adventurous quest.
PS : I think the rating is impacted by the budget of this drama.

Leia Mais

Waking up in the bed of a handsome man after a drunken night. A Cute and endearing story.

Story: Mao was secretly dating someone at work. However, when she found out that her boyfriend was cheating on her with a co-worker, she impulsively went to a bar and got drunk. The next day, she woke up to find a handsome man who had also been at the bar next to her! She also learn that she is now his wife.

This drama was just beautiful and endearing. I loved all the characters with all their shortcomings. And I was very pleased to wait to watch each episode of this drama weekly.

I was pissed at some and happy about others. And we did not have those crazy "ready for anything to get the Male Lead" kind of Second Female Lead. What a relief !!! I was tired of those lately, after watching several J-dramas. I was happy the woman figure wasn't tarnished in this show.

I loved the secret romance and rooted for the leads.
I found this drama also very realistic. Nothing out of this world happened. No coincidental encounters that serve the plot. That kind of shortcut. However, the last character to appear was very useful, I must say.

And we have to speak about Male Lead. He is extraordinary as a husband, commited, protective, patient .... No Wonder Female Lead fell for him. She is also very cute and I loved her growth, her bestie and the way she handles things. even if I was not ok with some of her methods.

The side stories were cute as well.

The OST is also very beautiful. Her is the official music video : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Tff7KtXbJA

So I recommend this drama.

Pros :
- Acting.
- Story was great and the pacing was also good. Because the plot was logical.
- Character development. This gives big value to the show because even the antagonists are redeemable.
- Good chemistry.
- No trashy Second Female Lead.

Cons :
- Plot logical so sometimes predictible. But even if I have a hint about the destination, I still love to see the landscape.
- Stupid break up.
- Misunderstandings.
- The second arc is understandable but it made me pass through fictitious despair and I don't know if the characters needed such dire situation.


Overall :
I liked this drama very much. It features some super cute moments and the setting of the story sparked my interest.
So, if you like light hearted romcom with endearing characters and no trashy gold digger SFL, this drama is for you.

Leia Mais