Reviews

Fresh and interesting

Though I've longed for it, I thought I'd never see the day with Kang Kiyoung as male lead and from the first episodes of this drama, he deserves to be one.

The drama is about a lawyer who lost everything, including her son, after being cheated by her husband and mother in law. She now works as a divorce resolver to help those who are going through unfair divorces. She also has to work with prosecutor-turned-lawyer Dong Kijoon, her former lover that she left to marry into money.

I'm quite surprised by how much I like the leads. The FL is by no means perfect but she doesn't deserve the treatment she got from her husband and mother in law. As the show progresses, she kept showing her resilience and practicality. Meanwhile, the ML is no pushover, he's a quick thinker and does not dilly dally with his decisions. Their chemistry is also good, they have that former lovers that haven't gotten over each other vibe going on and I'm excited to see them getting back together.

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Healthy relationship dynamic, Good for one watch, Toki is the best.

(General spoilers only.) The only highschool-teacher story I've seen (so far) with a truly well-balanced dynamic. How their strengths and weaknesses line up made them equals and they grow together. I found it sweet, endearing, and non-cringy. This is NOT a sexually charged, passionate, or taboo-focused story.

Overall light, sweet and easy fun that's good for one watch but isn't that memorable (except for Rintaro as Toki).

I really liked and greatly appreciated that Toki and Sahara communicated, supported/encouraged, and TRUSTED each other. They both had character growth and thrived with the attention and care of the other.

FYI: Japanese highschools are 3 years, so Toki being a second year student is equivalent to being a junior (third year) in the USA.

Rintaro as Toki was awesome and always fun to watch. Toki is bigger-than-life yet acted with nuance. Though Toki is wild in the physically over-dramatic Manga-style way (and often funny), multiple aspects of his personality and approach to things are admirable and even mature for his age. He is a 'doer' and doesn't think too deeply, yet he is thoughtful and puts effort into understanding others. He came across as an actual highschooler with a good heart who was a 3-dimensional character and not a caricature. He's sincere, straightforward, and totally lovable.

General Spoilers below.

There was an obvious balance in Toki and Sahara's personalities and their relationship that made their age gap a non-issue (for me anyway). Especially since they consciously kept their interactions PG, and Sahara had them wait until Toki graduated highschool before verbally making their romantic relationship official. There is a brief lip press at that time.

I mostly didn't mind the time spent on Sahara's past because it highlighted the differences between Nekoto and Toki and further demonstrated why Toki would make a good partner even though he's younger.

What I didn't like:

Takumi as Sahara was okay but not compelling. I liked him but didn't fall for him. He didn't do anything poorly, just didn't have much charisma and felt a little flat in his acting.

The school play bit made me cringe hard. It wasn't necessary and felt like pure contrivance to get an oops-kiss moment. The only thing that made it better than a trip-and-fall accident kiss was the humor of bigger-than-life Toki trying to act demurely as Snow White.

The end felt super rushed. There's a time jump, happy ending scene, and it's over. In that regard, I would have preferred less time spent on Nekoto to get more of Toki and Sahara (or even more of Todo's story since he kind of gets left out after halfway through).

The past connection was a simplistic, cliched, writing cop-out for tying things together. At least it was obvious from early on that it was coming due to little flashbacks and wasn't a complete surprise in the last episode as it is in so many shows.

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Another juicy makjang

Acting: I especially enjoyed the convincing performance of Kang Yul/Jung Woo Hyeok. He did a standout job, from showing his unwavering love to Shin JuKyeong and rising up as an actor and business manager, I thouroughly enjoyed his performance. The new male lead (Shi Kang) also did a great job based on how viewers were so eager for the revenge against him to happen, he was truly a convincing villain!! Of course, I cannot fail to mention Jacqueline Taylor (Son Sang Yoon) -- she had excellent character development and it was interesting to see her totally transform bit by bit through the show. She is an actress with plenty of impressive range and dynamic facial expressions and reactions. She was convincing as both a "villain" and a "hero" in her own ways. I look forward to seeing more excellent work from these 3 actors.


Story: I thoroughly enjoyed this typical web of revenge plots and subplots. It has everything you would expect from a nice juicy makjang - revenge, hidden identity, true romance, false romance, strong family ties, monopoly by conglomerates and destructive greed.Of course, it's a Makjang so people may be frustrated here and there. But there was also plenty of humour added in when necessary (Oh NaHui's romance lol), lighthearted family moments and sweet genuine romance (shoutout to Kang Yul/Jung Woo Hyeok).

All in all, I loved this and it is full of life lessons, which is something I always take away from Makjangs, which is why I love them.

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Is teinstein mystic season 2 good or season 1?

Ok so basically. Ive finished both seasons.
And im really disappointed in season 2.
Season 1 was amazing. The storyline was great. The characters and casting line was great.
Not missing out the storyline. It was smooth and went step by step without any exaggeration.
Season 2..i feel it was too messed up.
Everything was exaggerated.
Mainly what disappointed me at the start was that season 2 had no li xian. Same character but different actor. Do you think having different actor for the same character we would feel the same way as season 1?
No..but ok since i enjoyed this drama. I somehow watched. But atleast shouldve casted li xian resemblance because he did not resemble at all. The acts were different. Didnt get the same feeling as 1.

And li xian and ciciwang matched well and had a good chemistry in season 1. And we as the audience...have imagined them as a couple. And sudden change of actor. Would obviously not convince us.

Anyways leaving that.
The storyline is boring. Its exaggerated. Its not smooth at all. Its all cut in scenes. Feels like a mess. And ending was so not clear. Like what even happens. Its so confusing. So yeah very disappointed.
Atleast in season 2..main leads had to get married and shouldve had more romance which was missing. So didnt give the vibe.

So overall...both seasons r pretty good.
But season 1 was more better and understanding compared to season 2.

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the cutest show ever !!

As someone who really enjoys school and youth dramas, this drama is definetly the one. Each character's story was enjoyable and although there was a couple plot holes or things that didn't quite have it's full potential used, it was really fun to watch. Majority of the characters were so cute (especially Shao Nian) and made this drama as silly and as cute as it could be. The actors did an amazing job on delivering this drama in such a fun way. I think this drama really captures the chaotic but also heartwarming friendship between not only all the characters, but also the few duos/relationships inside. I would particularly like to mention the main two guys and their friendship because as the main leads, I think their story was for sure the cutest and although they had their ups and downs, everyone knew they were meant for each other. I would definetly recommened this drama to anyone who enjoys slice of life/bromance dramas.

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the BEST fantasy i've ever seen

At first, the description of this series seemed funny, so I started watching it just for fun, not expecting that I would like it at all. I watched this series very quickly, the plot really interested me and I felt a lot of emotions!

ALL the characters there are green flags, and if not, then they realize their mistakes. The whole series is like a fairy tale, the narrator is charming, and at the end we get an interesting "criminal" plot!

And James did a great job! I love his role as Love, he acts really natural and perfect for his role. The entire cast is really well chosen, the characters are charming and very pleasant to watch!

I'm very positively surprised because I didn't expect this series to be so good!

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Very Enlightening

I’ve read some of the negative reviews and I guess I didn’t see what they saw.

I was very impressed with the FL from start to finish. She showed all the emotions, all the attitude, all the despair, all the determination, never came across as too over the top, ever. Loved her.

Some characters were a little much at times, but those behaviors fit those characters.

I enjoyed the story, though it was often quite disheartening, and really enjoyed the well executed plot twists. Could have had a slightly better ending, but I’ve endured much worse ones - this was fine.

I would recommend and would watch again.

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Couple more often stay together relative to the South Korean version

9.5/10 is my rating. This is a 2019 Chinese dating reality show modeled after the popular South Korean show of the same title.

First I provide a synopsis then a unique review.

Synopsis

This is the Chinese version of the Korean reality dating show of the same name. The show starts with six singles, three men and three women who enter the chosen house location one at a time the first day. They cohabit the “signal house” (which changes each season) with the women sharing one bedroom and the men sharing two bedrooms. The overall goal of the show is for the singles to go about their daily lives while freely flirting/sending signals with the other occupants of the house. There are few organized activities, the main focus is on them living together and getting to know each other more naturally. At the end of each day they send a signal (an anonymous text) to the opposite sex single of their choosing and the detectives must determine who will send a signal/text to whom.

Signal House rules

>Singles must return to Signal House each night

>Singles cannot reveal their age or occupation until the 2nd day

>Singles cannot directly confess their like or love at any time during their stay

>At the end of the day, singles can send an anonymous text to one other house member

>Singles can go on one official date but each female picks a location without revealing her choice and the males choose the location they prefer.

Celebrity Panel/Detectives

Du Haitao is a television host and actor. He was born in 1987. So he would have been about 32 at the time the show was filmed.

Victoria Song is a singer, dancer, actress, model, host and author known for her work as the leader of South Korean girl group f(x). She was born in 1987. About 32 years old when the show was filmed.

Yang Chaoyue is an actor and singer in the Chinese group Rocket Girls 101. She was born in 1998 and would have been 22 when the show was filmed, she is the only season 2 panelist that was also a panelist in season 1.

Zheng Kai is an actor and television personality. He was born in 1986 and would have been about 34 when the show was filmed.

Rainie Yang she is an actor, singer and television host. Born in 1984 she would have been 36 when the show was filmed.

Pearl Poon also known as Poon Ngai Tung. Is a Hing Kong born actress. She was born in 1995 so would have been 24 when the show was filmed.

Liu Xuan Former artist gymnast. Born in 1979. Would have been 41 when the show was filmed. After she retired from gymnastics she turned to acting and television presenting.

Ren Jia Lun also known as Ren Guo Cho (English name Allen) is an actor and former professional table tennis player. He is a guest panelist in episodes 3 and 4. He was born in 1989 so would have been 31 when the show was filmed.

SINGLES

FEMALES

*Yang Kaiwen (Nickname Kevin). Fashion Toy Designer. Was an Animation major at Communication University China. Born in 1994. 25 at time of filming.

*Zhang Tian Film and television show producer. Double majored in Gender Studies and Film at Syracuse. Her company has offices in Bejing and Los Angeles. Born in 1996. 24 at the time if filming.

*Wui Pei Graduated from University of South Florida with a degree in Business Management. Holds the prestigious position of Director of Human Resources for an internet based company. Born in 1990. She was 29 years old when this show was filmed.

*Pan Zhengru. General Manager at an event planning company. She was born in 195 and would have been 24 at the time the show was filmed.

MALES

*Wu xiangwei (William) Champagne brand ambassador. Swiss hotel management school, project management major sommelier echondon sommelier of 2018 from food and wine 1991 and many other awards in the industry. Born 1991. 28 at the time if filming.

*Zhao Qi Jun He is a Beijing Culture Construction Foundation Investment Manager. Attended the University of Nottingham Finance and Investment and graduated with a masters in business administration MBA. Born in 1991. He would have been 28 at the time.

*Chen Yi Chen Part time English teacher. Attending the University of Canberra and majoring in business at the time of filming. He was born in 1996. He was 24 at the time of filming

*Huang Zhengxuan. Head of sports medicine at an anti aging cancer prevention center in Bejing. Born in 1995. He was 25 at the time of filming.

Review

The detectives/celebrity panel in this are nearly as entertaining to watch as is the drama playing out as the singles interact. Zheng Kai is so funny I was often laughing out loud at his antics. I have watched several reality shows with celebrity panels but this has been, by far my favorite.

One thing reviewers that have watched both the South Korean and Chinese versions of this show comment consistently is they like the Chinese version as the couples tend to stick together more. I have watched all the South Korean Heart Signal to date and wholeheartedly agree with this assessment. There is far less surprise in who they pick and who they reject and the reasons why they might go that way. It can still be frustrating when us self appointed matchmakers, watching through our fourth wall, identify a couple that seem perfectly suited for each other but one of them does not go that way. We must remind ourselves that these are real people with real feelings and it is often the case that the heart and mind do not agree on romantic choices.

My favorite part of these shows is watching such wonderful friendships and budding romances develop. It highlights how fragile an early romance can be. At the point where no one has fully confessed their feelings (and in this show they can’t( what seems like a rock solid situation, can be severed relatively easily. It is also important to keep in mind we see only a small portion of all the footage that is shot as the singles go about their lives. I am not suggesting they steer the outcome with the editing, but what I am indicating is there are small things that happen between the singles that we do not see which add up to a different outcome than we may expect.

The one disappointment I have in the Chinese version is there is not a lot of effort put in to show us what happened with the singles after they left the show. As viewers we feel we get to know the singles a little and care about what happens with them. I think it is unreasonable to think they would only choose others that were in the show to date, they are obviously going to return to their normal lives and have a different set of people they interact with. But I know I am not the only one that would like to know how they are doing. As much of an emotional roller coaster it can be for the viewers, it is even more for the singles.

I highly recommend this to anyone that likes reality television particularly those that are fans of shows like “The Bachelor” or just anyone that likes dating reality shows this, to me is a level up from that. It is all the good parts but with a lot more morality than you would ever find in such American shows which are highly sexualized. This, is my favorite out of the 4 seasons of south Korean Heart signal and the one season of the Chinese Version I have watched so far. I would rewatch it in the future with someone who had never seen it.

Spoilers

If you are a fan of the couples you think really like each other getting together you will likely be happy with the outcomes for these singles. Two couples emerge and you could clearly see the progression of their relationships. If you like seeing people that you might think are very well suited choose each other it could go either way. But you are not hit from left field like I have seen with some of these where you feel cheated by the outcomes. Yes, Season 4 of South Korean Heart Signal I am talking about you. Yes, Games of Thrones you are still on my sh&*^t list that way.

One thing about the Chinese version of the show I am not a fan of, is for the travel date they allow the female with the fewest signals (texts), cumulative, to have first choice. That inevitably winds up being the “catfish” (the female or male that arrives late with the soe purpose of mixing things up). I have only seen two of the Chinese Heart Signal shows now but it does frustratingly disrupt the flow and dynamics of those very fragile relationships that have developed. They typically choose singles that are outgoing and somewhat forceful in their approach. Since it is so hard ingrained in most of us that stealing someone else’s boyfriend or girlfriend is a bad thing, it is hard for the viewer not to feel badly toward these “catfish.”

Over all the shows like this I have watched, I notice how hard it is to be a super popular single. Because most of them have developed friendships with everyone else so matter who they pay attention to or ultimately choose they are hurting multiple people they have become friends with. I think the tears in their rooms are genuine and they really struggle with ow to choose and interact with the one they have settled on while doing the least emotional damage to all the others. Oddly I think that also winds up effecting who they choose in some cases, I have seen where I am fairly confident they made a completely surprise choice because they think if they choose that person, not even in the running, the others won’t feel as rejected.

I also notice a pattern with some, particularly the women, and often the catfish where they select the most emotionally vulnerable single and use emotional blackmail to get them to date and, in one case I think, choose them. Having interacted with some people like that over time I feel I am particularly in tune to that type of personality.

After I watched the show I went to see what I could find about what the singles were doing. It is much easier with the South Korean version as they post and interact on at least some of the platforms people in the United States use. But, with the Chinese version, I think they post and interact on Chinese social media platforms and I would not access or download those even if I spoke Chinese because our countries do not have friendly relations. I think even TikTok is a security risk so I would not access those places where more about what happened after might be found. So, it is hard to find information but there is a little bit out there.

The few mentions of these singles after the show basically confirm their humanity and they have the same issues and struggles as everyone. Yang Kaiwen and Zoa Qi Jun were engaged and are most likely married or well on their way to it, by now. That couple have did not have any major drama or break ups after getting together from the show. There are some really solid posts where they announced so that seems to be true that they are engaged/married now. Zhang Tian and Chen Yi Chen seem to have more of an on again off again relationship. Shortly after they were together there was a leaked message where Yi Chen seemed to be asking Tian about her past where she may have done more than what the Chinese consider an appropriate pace of dating. It is unclear whether his discomfort with her having so many past relationships broke them up or if it was his agent that preferred he be single but something definitely broke them up, at least for a time. They unfollowed, took down picture and Yi Chen even put out a statement defending Tian but also indicating they were taking a break. Several years later there were more indicators they may be back together. There were pictures taken at Disneyland of them separately but the background and other aspects were such close matches that netizens felt they were actually together at the park. And there are pictures of them from a photo booth during that same timeframe.

I think part of the magic of the show is it is a situation that rarely if ever would happen in real life. You have a group of highly attractive and successful people who live together for a time. It’s like the popular show “Friends” only a reality based situation. It is clear why it is so hard for them to choose who they want to finally select or who they want to go on a date with. It would be hard to have a really bad date between any of them. So you go out with your second or even third choice and you are, at minimum, friends with them if not slightly or more romantically interested in them. That would be a hard choice. And, I think they take rejection especially hard at times because these are such “cream of the cop” people that they are nt used to being rejected in their normal lives. They may be more used to rejecting the feelings of others than they are being rejected themselves. And, in normal life, you don’t reject someone then still have to live with them and/or potentially have to do a follow up show with them. You don’t have people tracking your moves after you are no longer on screen. So, it changes all the dating and interacting rules we are used to as it is that unique of a situation. It causes them to agonize even more over that final choice, I mean if your choice is between two equally amazing people you would be all the more worried you may make the wrong choice.

One of the most heartwarming moments with the detectives/celebrity panel was at the end of episode 10, they did a little “After Signal” and brought some of the singles into the studio. Some of the panel were beside themselves and absolutely starstruck. Knowing all the detective/celebrity panel are famous people themselves it was so cute to see them overcome when they saw the singles. It shows how intense we all feel for the singles as we watch them and feel like we know them. The odd thing is we know them from what they show us but they don’t know any of us at all. They at least might know the panel a little but we, as viewers, would feel the same emotions and could you imagine if you saw any of the singles and reacted to them like you were old friends. So, it is a very odd situation in that way for us viewers as well. We get to know these singles and their personalities better than we might know some of our own friends or at least their is the illusion that we do (people who know they are being filmed and in the context they are in are unlikely revealing all of their true selves). I, for example, was surprised when Kaiwen was acting so shy when introduced t the detective/celebrity panel. What I remembered of her from her interactions with the other singles, was she was fairly outgoing. But I had to remind myself of some things. First we all present ourselves differently depending on the social situation. We don't present ourselves at work typically the way we act at home. It’s not fake, it’s an adaptive way to respond to different environments. For Kaiwen, she was meeting people she considered to be celebrities without realizing they were reacting to them like celebrities (they were on more equal footing than they realized). Plus, she was rather shy to the others in her earliest times at signal house but then got more outgoing the more they all became like friends. So she was more of an ambivert than one might think going off the last impression. It is very much an illusion that we know any of the singles with any depth, we are seeing how they are in one highly unique situation. Which is why I understand they go pretty private after the show could you imagine having that may people that feel a friendship like connection with you and might want to fawn over you when they spot you in public? Celebrities deal with that a little but usually they are acting in a way or playing a role that is not them. Reality television participants are being themselves (well whatever version of themselves they might display in such a public format).

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1st half may be difficult for victims of bullying but the second half (revenge) makes it worth it

9.5/10 is my rating. This is a 2022/2023 South Korean psychological thriller with revenge as a primary driver for the main character. There are 16, 47-72 minute episodes in two parts. The first part comprises the first eight episodes which is primarily where the revenge is set up. The last eight episodes center around enacting the revenge.


First I provide a unique synopsis then I review.

 
Synopsis


The entire story consists of multiple instances of true life bullying and revenge incidents. It is all based on true occurrences but not all of any one but rather elements of multiple true occurrences all melded into one. It is representational of the full range of bullying and provides an example of the most extreme cases. In this story, Moon Dong eun (Song Hye kyo) survived her school years most likely by dropping out of school at a critical moment to survive the bullies. Others that were targets of the same group of bullies were not so lucky. Her entire life after that is centered around earning enough money, and putting herself in the correct position to exact revenge on those that caused such suffering and misery. She bears the permanent physical and emotional scars of the actions of this bully group.  She becomes a teacher and steers the situation so she is assigned as the homeroom teacher of the leader of the bullies’, Park Yeon jin’s (Lim Ji yeon), daughter.  From that position, which puts her in close contact with her targets, she plays out her revenge. By fate or chance she meets Joo Yeo Jeong (Lee Do hyun) who falls in love with the troubled and mysterious Dong eun and offers to help her after seeing and learning the horrible things that were done to her. Kang Hyeon nam (Yeom Hye ran) is a housekeeper in the home of one of the subjects of Dong eun’s interest. Heyeon nam catches Dong Eun collecting and going through the garbage for clues and strikes a deal for mutual benefit. Dong eun is at first unwilling to accept the true friendship and caring from others as she is so damaged from her past. But as she widens her circle of supporters to help in punishing those who were not punished by the adults at the time, she begins to heal emotionally. Karma is coming to those that bullied helpless and innocent victims in the form of Dong eun. Can she survive her own revenge?

Review

This is hands down the best revenge show I have watched. For anyone that has been bullied or been in an environment where there are lots of bullies, this will definitely resonate. For me those parts were hard to watch because I am an empath to begin with but also because I was involved in a situation where I was minimally bullied where someone else was bullied so severely it drove them crazy and they wound up on drugs, out of their mind, and ran over a bunch of people on a sidewalk and they are now in prison. I did my best, when that was happening to protect that person but, as the show portrays, it is hard to effectively protect anyone when you are one of their targets. But that was not physical bullying like this show had where it was severe physical bullying with a psychological component.

The acting in this is phenomenal by both those playing the bullies, the victims and just everyone. It does roughly follow where the first eight episodes (first half) sets the stage and tells about the past, and the final eight are focused on the revenge aspects. I delayed watching it because I wasn’t sure how well I could take watching the severe bullying, as when something like that happens to you it is not something you ever fully forget or recover from, so I thought it might be too emotionally upsetting for me. But it is just mainly those first episodes and the way she gets her revenge is so satisfying.

 
In sum, I highly recommend this for anyone that likes the revenge trope. I would rewatch it readily if it was on as there is a lot of depth to it

Spoilers

The main detractors for me were some unnecessary things people did. I think what I liked the least was that the main bullies’ spouse, who had been a very likable character nearly to the end, wound up murdering his wife’s lover. The guy was a part of the bully group, and had done some horrible things, but that did not excuse him pushing him, now blind, off a building into a vat of cement. I did not want to see the little girl with her murderous mom, psychotic grandmother, nor her sociopath father and thought I would be glad to see her going with the father she grew up with, but he did that and I was like great she is still being raised by a murderer. I know they were alluding that he did it so the real dad would not continue to bother them, but that is no excuse to murder someone.

The other senseless murder was when the girl that was the main bullies’ assistant, finished off the injured, long haired, boy bully. It showed he had raped her and they all were obviously still bullying her, but murdering him by making that final blow took her from a sympathetic character to a person willing to murder someone when they were helpless. If he had been actively attacking her again I could have sympathized but it was not an act of self defense at that moment. It did not feel as good that the main bully went down framed with a murder she may not have committed. They were trying for an even deeper revenge, because of the irony that she is serving time for a murder one of her victims committed, but I thought there was plenty of opportunity for her to go down for the murder without turning the victim into a murderer. And it is based on true events, not a record of true events, so it isn’t like that was the way it really happened.

The other detractor, for me, was Do Hyun’s suicide attempt at near the end. During the bullying, at her young age, it showed a suicide attempt and I think they were trying to show that suicide was always an option for her and now she accomplished her revenge why not? She herself should have known how much that would hurt Yeo jeong. I mean I would hope she would know how much that would hurt all of the friends she had, however reluctantly, developed. it is just such a selfish act I have a hard time sympathizing. And, if she had gone through with it, it would have reversed a lot of her revenge as her main bully would have used it as a way to vindicate some of her actions. Like see “she was always like that.” I unfortunately know that is likely how that would play out as I spoke with the bully that drove the girl crazy and to prison and asked her about that incident and she pretty said “I know isn’t she crazy?” It was apparent from the very gleeful way she said it, that she was pleased with the outcome and did not feel any personal responsibility for the end result. That bully group destroyed one life and was, in my opinion, partially responsible for the death and injury that person that was bullied caused.

It would have been nice to have seen the main couple together longer than just the tail end of the last episode. Some say the romance element was completely unnecessary but I enjoyed the angel that two people with psychological scars can find healing in each other.

I think they left it open for another season by showing the male and female lead enter the prison where it was apparent they planned to exact revenge against the person who murdered the male lead’s father. And that wasn’t a bad way to end it. It didn’t wrap up that particular piece but that was okay because it wasn’t what we were there for anyway. Streaming platforms like to keep the piggy banks open and often end things very unclear. In this case that one piece was not even completely unclear. We know enough about our main girl by now that we can be sure she will help him get his full revenge.

#SongHyeKyo

#TheGlory

#LimJiYeon

#LeeDoHyun

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Loved it

Historical dramas are definitely my thing, and this was the second Chinese drama I ever watched. I loved how strong the female lead was, and how the show took a very feminist angle! While pursuing romance, the female lead also seeks to enact revenge. Weiyoung is smart, witty and driven. So, she becomes the empress in the end,

I also loved the male lead, and his devotion to the female lead. It helps that the couple are married in real life, because their chemistry is insane. I cried so much at the ending, the villains did not give them a chance to have a happy life at all.

Now onto the villains, as much as I hate Changle and Changru, they were awesome villains to watch. They were determined to get what they wanted no matter who they hurt. It made for an entertaining show.

The only part of the show I didn’t like was the second male lead, I felt nothing for him, and I didn’t like his braids!

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I didn’t like it

So, this was my first official Chinese drama back in 2020, and I couldn’t get behind the toxicity of the male lead, or the romantic relationship. I now know that modern dramas are not my thing, so that may have influenced my rating.

I saw their relationship as toxic because the male lead seemed to force the female lead into liking him, of course, she chose him in the end, but it left a queasy feeling in my stomach.

I also didn’t love the OST. I usually adore OSTs in Chinese dramas, but this one did not do it for me.

If I could say good things about it, all the actors and actresses are attractive, and the locations in the show are fun to watch.

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