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Best costume drama!
By far the best costume C drama I’ve seen. It was interesting how and why he kept his name and status hidden. Loved how they made the FL strong and also a hero in the story. Her friends were very supporting and funny. The ML was super cute and nice towards his little sister in law! It took them way to long to act like husband and wife…Still the best costume C drama!
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Nicely Crafted but left with a Discontented Surface
I was quite hooked when I first saw the trailer for 'Pursuit of Jade.' So, I was quietly waiting for their release, and honestly, it was worth my wait. The first few episodes were so funny, engaging, and informative. Along with the main leads, the side characters played very well, and later those supporting personages became a strong backbone throughout the series.When it comes to judging the story, I wish I could say, "The script enchants me." I had really enjoyed the series from its start to the middle, which was great, like a 'fully packed content.' But the downfall commenced with the last few episodes, and I gradually started losing interest in the wrap-up episodes. The emperor's immature expressions and actions seem quite unrealistic. In the series, his character is depicted as a 'puppet ruler,' but the point that still keeps knocking me is, 'Can a puppet ruler be this much puerile?!'
The second thing that pissed me off was the 'Machiavellian' character played by Deng Kai. With no doubt, he just nailed that role, but the way it was scripted in the storyline exasperated me quite a bit. To accede to the throne, how ruthless a person can be! He spared none, and the worst part is, he even tried to kill his own son!!
Another thing I would like to highlight is the monotonous tagline 'Seventeen years ago' throughout the series. I'm not criticizing it because the event that happened seventeen years ago is the main point of the series; everything else in the drama is based on it. What I am trying to say is 40 episodes feel quite long to me to bring up the issue or the hidden truth that affects everyone's life.
Maybe that's why the ending of "Pursuit of Jade" is not up to the mark!
Lastly, the series concludes on a happy and satisfying note for all the protagonists, obviously including the main leads. But I am a bit doubtful about the 'epilogue' in the last episode. I feel quite dubious about the necessity of the 'extras.'
Anyway, long story short, "Pursuit of Jade" presents a good storyline. All the characters are well-played, and I am satisfied with their acting. The production was also very good. Overall, IT IS A GOOD ATTEMPT.
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Slow Burn, Sharp Minds, and Totally Hooked: My Tang Dynasty Obsession
OMG, I did not expect to get sucked into this drama, but here we are. 😂 Like seriously, I went in thinking “meh, another mystery thing” and ended up binge-watching half the episodes in one night. This show low-key hit different.First off… Su Wu Ming. Bruh. 😏 This guy was flashy, yeah, but it was his brain that was insane. He was always ten steps ahead, manipulating situations, and making everyone else look like amateurs. I swear, sometimes I just sat there like, “Wtf, how did he even think of that?!” Honestly, he was my favorite reason to watch this show. High-key a genius.
Then there was Lu Ling Feng… oh boy. At first, I was like smh—he was so cocky and rushed into everything like a maniac. 🙄 I was rolling my eyes so hard. But ngl, by Episode 11, he started to grow on me. He learned from Su Wu Ming, thinking before swinging his sword, and slowly became a real character instead of just being the “proud general.” The bromance though… lol, I was weak. It wasn’t even cheesy, just real—like “I don’t totally hate you yet, and maybe you’re useful.” 😂
The show didn’t shove romance in my face either, thank god. 😅 There were minor hints, but they didn’t ruin anything. That’s rare for dramas, ngl. It kept the focus on the mysteries and character growth, which was honestly the main reason I kept watching.
The supporting cast was quirky and fun too. There was the chicken-obsessed doctor 🐔, the martial artist-turned-disciple, and a pretty talented artist. They all had their own weird vibes, and watching them work together actually made me care about everyone in the team. It was chaotic but in the best way.
The cases themselves? Chef’s kiss. 😤 They were clever, twisted, and some had me like “wtf?!” but the solutions actually made sense. The supernatural stuff was fun but subtle—it was never like “ghosts everywhere lol,” it was all about human motives and clever detective work.
Pacing? Yeah, it was slow at first. But if you’re into slow-burn dramas, this is so your jam. 🔥 Characters grew, the plot built, and the payoff was worth it. I couldn’t even with how satisfying some of those reveals were.
Overall, if you like mysteries, clever characters, and slow-burn shows where the leads actually develop, this one’s a must-watch. Can’t wait for Season 2. I’m already overthinking what Su Wu Ming and Lu Ling Feng are gonna do next. 😅
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Bland
I really wanted to love Bon Appétit, but the execution is just... bland. For a show centered on Michelin-star cooking, the lead performance felt remarkably one-note. Yoona’s portrayal of Ji-yeong lacks the 'grit' you’d expect from a world-class chef; instead of a professional out of her element, we got the same wide-eyed, idol-style reactions we’ve seen in every other rom-com. It feels like she’s playing 'Yoona as a chef' rather than actually inhabiting the character. Without any real depth in the acting, the high-stakes palace intrigue just feels like a low-budget skitWas this review helpful to you?
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One of the Greatest story of extremely Strong General Couple in my book!
I have been hearing about this drama for a long time, I thought it was just another historical drama about generals but when I started watching it boy!! I was utterly blown away and completely proven wrong. I have been absolutely hooked by this unique gem from the beginning, keeping me glued to the screen eagerly waiting for every episode excitedly.What drew me to this drama is the fact that female lead is undeniably strong, yes it's bordering on supernatural strength but I love this feature. It's deliberate and most importantly it works perfectly for this most outstanding and extra ordinary story.
Hats off to all the perfect cast who have brought this magnificent masterpiece to life with their superb acting and smooth chemistry. Not only the main leads are drop dead gorgeous even the villians are heart throbs.
💫ZLH as always have portrayed his complex, layered and emotionally intense character XZ brilliantly well. With each new project his acting has become more natural, refined, and emotionally nuanced. Once again he displayed his mastery of micro-expressions in drama, particularly his ability to convey deep emotion, longing, or menace through his eyes without needing dialogue through out many scenes in this drama. The drama flawlessly showed us XZ's sweet, caring, sensitive, protective, thoughtful, soft, tender and loving family man side in contrast to his decisive, tough, possesive, manipulative, calclating, tactical, cunning, over-powering, commanding presence, patriarchal and strong unmatched awesome warrior side. XZ has very turbulent life yet he masterfully excelled in educational field and cultivated a very admirable and formidable character becoming a legendary marquis who has incorporated the wisdom of contemplating things through 9 times before taking action. He demonstrated both the brains and the brawn and showed his amazing capabilities through out the drama.
💫TXW has also nailed her character exceptionally and impeccably well. She has brought her sun like energy to brighten, employed her intense agility, perseverance and strength to bring out character FCY's warrior and wild persona. She did not fail to incorporate and blend in her sweet, bright and lively but strong and confident energy with the character to make FCY's extremely likeable and unforgettable character come to life seemlessly. She has delivered a whole range of scenes i.e. comedic, intensly emotional, romantic and action ones extremely naturally and with brilliant skills. FCY's character growth is most significantly engaging and captivating part of the story and it is done stunningly well. Her journey of being a child bearing the brunt of mocked parents, to a teenager with no parents and shouldering her household and her ill younger sister, to taking care of and protecting her severly injured husband with unstable identity and a harrassed friend, to protecting her village, to protecting the country along with all her family and friends is a massive and incrediblly admirable feat. FCY is a beauty who has brawns unquestionably yet lacked high intelligence (not being able to study due to socio-economical factors) yet she possessed very admirable rare wisdom, strong principles and insightfulness that leaves most educated people to submit to her stunning decisions and capabilities in the face of most dire circumstances. She is like a wildflower: beautiful, carefree and having capitivating presence that commands undistracted attention to it. The drama perfectly captivates her loving, caring, bold, hardworking, silly, commited, daring, responsible, wise, destressful, vulnerable, yearning, resilient, progressive, selfless and empathetic sides, she is constantly evolving and achieving new goals.
💫Villians have performed significantly well too. They also have captivated the audience with their masterful portrayal of very complex characters. QM/SYH displayed his very vicious, ruthless, obsessive, vindictive, manipulative, cunning, vengeful, selfish, unhinged and malicious sides yet did not fail to express that he was actually pitiful person and there was part of him that wanted unconditional love and care. The character that was hopelessly unreemable had wish for the light for the sake of loved one only. Then, SYQ who is no less villainous then QM bordering on maniac too similarly had a side who loved and admired his brother and wanted to protect his parents and avenge their death. Not forgetting to mention WY, didn't want to be villian but was forced to take wrong path due to all the events 16 years ago invites audiences' loathing yet subtly compels them for understanding at the same time. Then there are other villians who play the usual troupe of committing henious crimes being pathetic, greedy and selfish for the sake of power.
✨️Amongst all the other characters I love the introduction of pig slaughter squad brothers (different from novel). Their presence added a lot of fun, excitement, brotherhood moments and deeper emotional layers to the events. Also, XZ's sub general's humorous and loyal moments and events stood out a lot. Then there are LHA, Tutor Tao, Mr and Mrs Zhao, GSY, Princess, YQQ, YB, and FCN who were all so very sweet, intresting, lively, warm and handful that there was never a dull moment with them around. The director brilliantly and masterfully made the simple Linan town characters like Mr Wang, Mr Li etc stand out and have emotional presence with their lingering short but impactful stories that it pulled on viewers hearts strings to even see them get hurt.
💫The main couple YZ/ XZ and FCY had fire chemistry that went through the roof!💖👌 They blessed the viewers with all kind of dynamics: at times they were domestic, sweet, soft, cute then they had extremely passionate and emotional moments coupled with times where there was blazing tension and attraction between them. The drama perfectly executed the different phases of their love journey: their acquaintance curiosity turned into admiration then it turned into hesitant love then that turned into beautiful heart warming yearning when they were apart which later transformed into selfless, unrelenting, overpowering and unwavering love. Even though their relationship dynamic wasn't enemies to lovers yet they magnificently managed to build steaming tension between them at different instances. The viewers experience wide range of emotions between the main leads while they start from conincedental meeting, move on to mutual contractual fake marriage, then they develope genuine feelings, take their time to accept their own feelings before finding courage to confess their feelings given their inconvenient circumstances. Eventually building a positive relationship where they trust, protect and rely on each other while unraveling the mysteries and solving the challenges surrounding them.
Although the chemistry between our 2nd CP QM and YQQ was very engaging, it was morally grey relationship. Viewers were kept at the edge of their seats, teasing them that this cp might turn out okay. However sadly the only way out for their relationship dynamic was the ending QM accepted for himself. Now to the 3rd cp GSY and the princess, their love story is very cute, humorous and endearing.
💫The cenimatrography, CGI and sound effects are exteremly impressive! The directing of this drama is unquestionably ingenious. Rich attention to details in set designs, luxurious and status related costumes, resonating BGMs and OSTs, immersive atmosphere, mesmirising sceneries, very elaborate and engaging camera angles all blended in gloriously and splendidly well to bring this majestic work to life. This historical drama has high production quality, strong acting and a delicate balance between historical accuracy and compelling storytelling.
💫The drama story itself is grand in every aspect💯, encompassing emotional, and social struggles, high lighting timeless issues like class, women's rights, and social change, making them feel relevant today. It brilliantly kept multiple romantic stories with various dynamics engaging, suspenseful, exciting and captivating while immersing the viewers in the world of warfare and political intrigues. Viewers get to have taste of how the art of war is employed: the wisdom, the reasons, the psychology, the capabilities, the decisions, the restrictions, the decipline, the miltary rules and ranks, the effects of wrong decisions made on the royals, ministers and citizens' lives.
💫ENDING:
I loved the happy dreamy ending for our most beloved General CP that they have hard earned! Most villians got what was coming for them. I would have liked more elaborate ending for the pig slaughter squad, MK and GSY x Princess CP however, I was satistfied that they had peaceful and good endings where they all came to terms with what they wanted and loved to do and which paths to follow. QM x YQQ ending was very interesting, QM finally learned that to love is to be selfless enough to be able to sacrifice even your life just to make sure your loved one is happy and safe. Their ending was sad but unfortunately in this life he reached the point of no return, only by finally doing something good at the end of his life did he earn good karma for his next life. Towards the end there were many hints that most of them will meet in the next life. It was very surprising for me that YQQ is not from this world but could have been from the future world.
Epilogue:
I really liked this part. It was very unique supernatural element of the ending, it gave some more conclusion to the main narrative, revealed the future fates of some characters, wraped up some loose ends, and provided us with some final reflections. It's either a parallel universe or possible future where events of 16 years ago never happened. Where neither XZ, nor CY has lost their parents, they have a good relationship with WY( who hasn't commited any villainous acts). Like our main couple promised they chose each other in the next life too. Then, QM is a good and wise king who everyone respects while YQQ happily runs the resturant yet when they meet, due to their wish to never meet again in the next life, QM can’t stand to be in her presence in this life (wondering if they were enemies in last life). I would have preferred to see them to be a happy couple at least in this life but if this is what they both wished for in the last life then it is acceptable.
💫Overall, I enjoyed this grand work a lot. I highly recommend it anyone who enjoys historical, romantic, war and mystery dramas. It is 10/10 in every aspect for me!!
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It was...just okay
I actually really liked the fl, liked her tone, her approach to things. Yang Mi did a really great job I thought she was perfectly cast, the problem I had was unfortunately with Xu Kai, he was just so...checked out. I thought his character would have been a nice change compared to the roles he usually plays but I think he suits a comedic role much more. His charisma can actually shine there whereas here...I felt nothing.The kisses lacked chemistry, the romantic moments had a dissapointing buildup. I think with small tweaks it could've been a better drama.
I have to be honest, I only properly watched the first half and skimmed the last half because the cases bored me and the dynamics weren't interesting anymore. My favorite character by far was Yang Mi's best friend. I was really happy she finally left her shiitty husband, she was too good for him.
Aside from that my personal favorite duo was Qin Shi and Li Dai's relationship. I really really wanted to see more of them. It would have been so good to see them working together, their arc was so good. I really disliked Qin Shi's bosses, every smile felt fake and rehearsed.
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Good slice of life but less of romance
My favorite part was the acting of all the cast, the director showed very well their emotions. It's like only a part of their life were shown to us, not everything was really detailed. But still everyone will somehow grow into you. Idk if this is how a slice of life show should be but I just feel like there's still something missing especially with the progression of Qiao Xi Chen and Jian Yi Fan's relationship. Or probably it's just really focused on the friendship of the four and just a little on the romance part. This was a good slice of life show but personally I think it's a bit overrated.Was this review helpful to you?
I have so many questions for the writer but none they will enjoy
This show was SO all over the place, I was fully skimming the eps for one reason and one reason only; I had already invested time into the show.Was it trying to be a thriller? a mystery? crime? The characters were so undercooked, the dialogue weird, the chemistry non existent, the suspense was also nowhere to be seen. Like this masterplan that they've made is horrible that everyone figures it out within 5 seconds like what are we doing???? what was in the air in that writers room?
I thought the final episode was the only one that was kind of okay, I genuinely think I could have just watched that one episode and wouldn't have missed anything. Which is saying a lot considering the fact that I even skimmed that one.
What a letdown...the premise sounded so good and yet the execution was the worst.
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Such a soft, emotional movie about family, with the cutest cats and incredible acting from FirstKhaotung. They always amaze me—especially Khaotung’s crying scenes 😭 His acting is absolutely incredible—it’s absolutely top-tier 🫶Lynx is a strong-willed boy with his own beliefs, and maybe a little stubborn. But he knows what’s right and wrong, and if you can prove your point, he’ll accept it instead of insisting on his own view. He may seem tough on the outside, but deep down, he has a very soft heart 🥰
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THIS IS PEAK!! IT’S A MUST WATCH!!
everything about this series is made to perfection ✨👏 the overall theme was executed so well. The way it shows all types of love languages, the dynamic between different characters and big on family related situations. it’s realistic, it brings you perspectives and warmth in a very comforting way. The cats became a source to human’s happiness, acceptance of queer and the love story between tigerlynx was so beautiful. this is a must watch!! make sure to prepare tissues along the way, it’ll both wrecked you up and make you crack up like crazy. oh and 🦋🦋 will be flying everywhere across the room. this will be a rollercoaster of emotion.one thing I love most is the parallel between the moments, the dialogue that adds on to the story. The story follows and uncover the unsaid truth, the unknown thoughts between Lynx and his Mother (Je Meow). after watching it, I learn aspects and maybe realizes that love has always been around you, sometimes you just don’t realize it. it makes you appreciate things and maybe look forward to spending more time with your love ones. there are just things that can’t be said, and things that are misunderstood but at the end of the day, the love between parents and their children will always be shown, it may not be directly but it has always been there.
tigerlynx relationship status is just so pure so raw and just greeennn. it’s the most realistic one I’ve watched. the dynamic between them, they reflect real life engaging ways. TIGER is a full on GREEN FLAG, that man is the standard and this show proves that even without many kisses or nc scenes, the emotions, the tensions can be convey in such a beautiful way. the way they both yearn for one another, it was executed beautifully.
The side characters aren’t the usual catalyst ones. it’s not a cliche and you’ll totally love all side and cameo characters.
The acting for this story is 10/10, the way khaotung cries so beautifully, acted lynx out so perfectly and brings the pain, the grief of the character out so realistically 👏👏. First ate so hard being the green flag character, the emotions in his eyes, the way he falls, yearn, and finally opens lynx up, he makes me fall for tiger so bad. The overall chemistry between firstkhaotung (as always) is made perfectly to capture all the emotions, the feelings, the thoughts in tigerlynx. THEY CAN ACT and I’ll never shut up about how well they acted.
you don’t have to be a cat lover to watch this show, please open up your heart for this, I promise you..I’ll end up on your top list. (I hope this review satisfy your interest and brings you into giving cat for cash a try!!)
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A True 10/10
When I tell you this show had me in a chokehold...I’m not exaggerating when I say I couldn’t skip a single scene. Not one. That alone should tell you everything.It was just… perfect. The storyline, the chemistry, the action, the characters, everything clicked. And what I really loved is that it actually balanced fantasy and romance properly. Neither one overshadowed the other, which almost never happens. Usually one ends up eating the other alive, but here? Perfect blend.
The chemistry between Hou Ming Hao and Lu Yuxiao?? INSANE. Like, I could feel it through my screen. Every look, every interaction, there was tension, there was softness, there was everything you want. You know how they say, I opened the book and they fell out? Yeah this is basically that. Perfect casting.
And the female lead, finally!!! A “strong” character who is actually strong. I’m so tired of dramas throwing around titles like “general” or “warrior” just for the character to stand there and look pretty with nothing to back the shows claims. Not here. She was smart, capable, fierce, and actually acted like it the entire time. No false marketing, no last-minute personality loss.
Also can we talk about the visuals for a second? The sets were great, sure but the COSTUMES?? Absolutely insane. Hou Ming Hao’s slutty little red number? Hang it in the Louvre. Immediately. And Lu Yuxiao’s flowy dresses?? So dreamy, so magical, I genuinely felt like I was floating half the time.
And the HAIR. Oh my god the hair. Whoever was in charge deserves a raise and a vacation. Everyone has never looked better, and the amount of creative, intricate hairstyles?? Literal dream material. No wonder everything went viral on Xiaohongshu.
Even the secondary characters?? I cared about them. Like actually cared. Their storylines didn’t feel like filler, they added to the whole thing, which just made the world feel fuller and more alive. I can safely say this has one of my all time favorite second lead couple.
I’m genuinely sad it’s over. This is 100% going on my “rewatch when life feels empty” list. It just delivered on all fronts.
And I’ll say it again because well.. I can. BEST Hou Ming Hao HAS EVER LOOKED. Top tier. No notes.
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AS CLICHE AS IT GETS....
I cannot say this is a "bad "drama.this is a well wrapped home work checking all the right boxes but after watching 2 episodes and a half that's enough to understand where we are going.
this is the same story told over and over again without adding any novelty.
I guess that some people might find this cute and keep watching and I'm not saying they shouldn't. I am just here to "warn" others like me that already enjoyed this kind of story elsewhere with better writing and characters.
this drama is literally a blue print for chinese dramas
lover from highschool meet after years✅
accidentally falling into one's arms✅
fake boyfriend needed to show off ✅
bickering second couple✅
office couple✅
quite algid male✅
bubble FL✅
if you like these tropes and don't pay attention to characters or dialogues this might still be enjoyable.
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Prepare yourselves for a lovely time
I'll keep it short and sweet just like the drama itself. It was a lovely show with really good leads; their chemistry, their flirting it was all so lovely to watch.The plots woven with their careers were sometimes boring but it wasn't long enough to truly break the story. Above all, the characters and the events happening felt realistic therefore it was okay that the leads didn't accidentaly meet every time they went outside.
I also appreaciated their conversations. There was no room for true misunderstandings because soon after, they would actually discuss it and resolve it. Overall, a very enjoyable little treat. I also loved that it was a shorter drama and left it at a very nice point.
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started magnific but become a childish bad comedy
when a woman doesn't trust her man, she disempowers him, castrates him.This was beautiful for me at the beginning... but... yap the same shit, patterns over again. Slowly feeling so disappointed. I' m at 27th episode. She become so entitled, total unrealistic. Love the characters, the chemistry , the acting, it is a great crew , but...
She is powerful but if you see deeply she disempower her husband, the army, the leader. I did not like this at all. It became a bad childish comedy.
What she did for him in episode 26, like sedating him, "out of love and care" that's fake love. It is attachment, it is a subtle inversion of roles that mimics love. It is the greatest trap of disempowerment.
Ooo, she, weighing 40 kg, fought a 120 kg barbarian and won... I'm laughing so hard at this... Superwoman.
ohh and of course she discovers who he is and here we go again... she is upset, run from him... I am so fucking tired of this kind of script... as in Love between Lines (this moment ruining for me everything also)
in all honesty, i completely believed in her strong feminine character, it was a great example for me at the beginning... but she started to disappoint me a lot...
from 10 it drops slightly to 7, for me.
I will still watching but not with the same enthusiasm as at the beginning.
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