The Princess Wei Young

....it’s Wei leng fault... give her holy water

All was Wei leng fault... please give her holy water to finally scatter bad luck and stop attracting all the bad people intentions around her.

Brillant series and interprétations, a deluxe team of actors!

Some aspects:
1. The script could deserve extra considération, another approach on and a more expressed and veemente condamnation of domestic violence!
2. Also a higher percentage of more emancipated, educated women in the series would have been highly welcomed, despite the fact that during ages that WAS not the situation.;
3. And most woman are being protracted, all the time, as thesey, divisive, sordic, submissive and twisted beings.
Even if the overall objective is to add feelings, dynamisme, to facilitates a commercial drama plot, Its extent might be going a bit too far.

ALL the above said: Prince Ann is by far the most interesting character! Deserved a better script development, a true opportunity, to blossom despite ALL the adversities.

Even if this is a historical drama, it is also a fictional drama. Therefore why not enrich it by adding some other parfums. Ex. At a given moment situations become recurrent if not repetitive. For almost 40;episodes there is the over presence of our Heroine being accused of all that went Rong in both heavens and earth, with a significant part taking place in the manor and on the prison and on palace laundry department....

with all the above said, i did enjoy, the story, the plot and all the actors. Good entertainment!

Read More

Binged it in 3 days!

I'm not really into historical dramas but after watching Eternal love and The eternal love I decided to give more historical dramas a chance since those two were really good, and I'm extremely glad I did. This drama had me roped in from episode one. It was addictive. It does, however, have a lot of political stuff which basically dictates everything but that just adds in to make it that much greater. I would definitely recommend especially if you're new to the historical drama genre. Be warned however that there are a lot of downs but still not extremely depressing.

I enjoyed every character...even the evil ones that at times I even found myself rooting for them because in some ways they were relatable lol. I only cried twice. Happy watching!

Read More

How much do you like Cinderella stories?

Princess Weiyoung is determined to seek revenge for the killing of her entire family/clan. But what happens when she falls for the enemy?

I really liked the premise of this story - but at 23 episodes in - it got too repetitive. Princess Weiyong's 'stepfamily' abuse her and undercut her at every turn in incredibly obvious ways. Frankly, almost every character is out to get her.

The brave but bumbling love interest hurts as much as he helps. He can't understand that Princess Weiyong's family are abusive and that his own family is conspiring against them.

I liked that Princess Weiyoung rescues herself because everyone around her is incompetent...but it wasn't like her rescues were impressive or unique.

I grade on other criteria:

Complex Themes - 5
The only person who can rescue you is you. Judge people based on their actions not based on their family or reputation.
Character Growth -3
None that really stuck with me. Perhaps there is a twist later that changes the two main characters. I didn't get there. 3 points because the character Li Changru was really intriguing, complex, and the actress was able to show the layers of the character really well.
Nuanced Women -3
Li Changru is a real fascinating character, but the rest are Cinderella story caricatures.
Cinematography/Production Values - 6
Every once in awhile, there will be a really gorgeous cinematic take, but generally the costumes, makeup and hair look a bit garish and cheap. Cinematography is mostly serviceable - just captures long shots and reaction shots.

Read More

✒ ⚜️ Where There's a Wei There's a Will ⛩️ °8° °excellent°

When she was born the sun poked through the clouds. It was a good omen. Daughter to King Hexi, Xin Er was born to royalty. She was loved and adored.

Li “Wei” Young was born in February. She's a jinx. She must die, says Madam, her evil stepmother. Wei's mother was the foot washer woman, and Madam will never forgive her for diverting her husband's eyes. Wei was raised by a modest family in the countryside. Before she arrives at the Li household, Madam intends to have her murdered.

Madam's murderous intent reaches far beyond Wei, though. She plotted the murder of King Hexi's whole family by framing him for treason. Xin Er escaped but was injured and dying. Wei took her home and nursed her back to health. Wei saved her. The two women have some time together while Xin recuperates. When Wei is murdered, Xin Er is with her and fights back. She manages to kill the assassin and hide the body. She knows the Li family is behind multiple intrigues and deaths; now they're trying to kill one of their own daughters! The woman who raised Wei is terrified that she'll be blamed for Wei's death, so they concoct a plot to replace the deceased Wei with Xin Er. The real Weiyoung is gone. Xin Er is marked for death and must hide. Xin Er was already determined to seek Justice for her own family. Now she wants justice for her savior, Wei, as well. What better WAY than to be WEI and watch the Lis while right in their household?

Now there's 2 daughters in the Li residence and 2 female cousins. Madam will make sure that HER daughter, the legendary beauty Chang Le, gets all the benefits, though. TPW is a 2016 release that is rated 8.3 on MAL. It is 1 season consisting of 54 45-minute episodes. I'll get this out of the way here: TPW is great, but falls short of being the masterpiece that The Rebel Princess-8.5 or Stories from Yanxi Palace-10 is. I can heartily recommend it, but when stacked up against the greats, like Rise of Phoenixes-9.5, it takes foot-washer status. It is still worth watching.

Madam is shocked that Wei made it to the house alive. When she didn't hear back from the first assassin, she sent more to set fire to the inn where Wei was staying. Thankfully, a kind stranger, Tuo Ba “Jun” (Luo Jin of The Long River & Three Kingdoms, who looks like he's Elon Musk's handsome little brother) saves her life ~ quite heroically. This actor is another superb Chinese romantic ML. His looks are fine, no complaints, but it's his voice, presence, and delivery that turn him into a nice package. He even looks manly in lace. One of his outfits is trimmed in black lace and it's gorgeous.

As Madam gets to know Wei a little better, she despises her. This is not a woman who acts like a humble maiden raised in the countryside! Wei has dignity, presence, a way with words, and self-respect. Madam concocts another plot to ensure Wei's death: She's poisoned and dumped for dead and the mountains. Fate brings Jun to her once again. He saves her life and nurses her back to health. He's called home suddenly, so he leaves Wei a letter requesting that she meet him at a certain place & time, but the letter is lost and Wei never receives it. She heads back home because she still has a mission; this is one brave woman. The Li house is in a state of excitement. The youngest Prince has returned home! Chang Le can hardly contain herself. She's determined to marry him. They're all invited to the banquet that his mother is holding. Even the illegitimate daughter, Weiyoung, is invited.

The king has 3 top candidates for the next crown prince: The two oldest princes and Jun, the son of the deceased crown prince. Pressure is rising on the king to make a choice. The king also has a daughter who loves to parade as a prince: Chen Yu Qi plays Tuo Ba Di. This actress is pure gold. I love her. She went on from her stellar performance here to star in Ashes of Love-6.4, which, it would appear, I didn't like as much as anybody else did, but she really shines in Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Sabre-9. At the same time, the Li residence has females galore. They also have cousin, Liang Li Minde (Liang Zhen Lun from Ordinary Person Character), but only the Princess pays him any mind - and that's to torture him. The oldest Li and the heir is brother Li Min Feng (Nan Fu Long from Arsenal Military Academy) but he's an idiot, and no one wants to hang with him.

Visits, dinners, outings, sacred journeys, mournings, celebrations… It seems there's always a reason for the princes to be around the Li women. Wei wants to hate Jun, he's the son of the emperor who ordered her father killed, afterall. She tries to be cold with him, but even when he's tempted to give up, he just keeps coming back for more. Wei can't keep up the ACT much longer. Her feelings keep growing.

In the meantime, Madam is working her black magic. Wei prevails in the first couple rounds, so Madam wants her dead all the more. The tactics get more harsh. Wei is in constant peril. Chang Le could practically kill her with looks alone. Prince Jun only has eyes for Wei, so Chang Le's eyes are also laser focused on Wei.

From there it's one move after another. There's a bunch of princes and Li women and they are of a similar age, so they are checking eachother out and falling in love, though it's not always mutual. Princes, plural, means there will be a fight for the throne - the moms get involved in that. All the while, Chang Le and her mother just can't stop. Then another party, who had seemed to be a friend, jumps in and creates havoc.

Tiffany Tang (Blossoms Shanghai, My Sunshine-6.5) is “Wei” / Xin Er. I'm not sure why I've often felt on-the-fence about her. It may come down to her voice being slightly thin and nasally. She does a very solid emotional scene in a later episode. Her acting is fine - high average, maybe better? There is this lightweight feel about her. I don't dislike her at all, but this is the second feature in which I've seen her, and something, yet unidentified, is nagging at me. Luo Jin is a good romantic male lead. His earthy voice is a rich umber. We believe his attraction to her. He maintains a sense of humor, or lighthearted air about him.

Vanness Wu portrays prince Tuo Ba Yu. This actor has some strange unexplainable likability factor. I kept liking him despite the fact that he attempted to kill a bunch of innocent people rather than grant them a refuge early in the show. I also continued to like him a little despite the fact that I know he's up to no good. Ultimately, he continues to make poor choices and continues a downhill skid. He teaches one character to be a strangler vine. Act innocent, take nourishment and slowly grow to devour the host. He didn't explain that it's a self-strangler vine. He's a romantic ML in Autumn's Concerto-7.2, and he's surprisingly good. He starts toxic - this actor seems natural in such a role, but he comes around. Sadly, AC starts great but as the ML improves, the show declines and the 2nd half is not nearly as good as the first. Mao Xiao Tong (Love O2O-6.8 - the show, Reunion: The Sound of the Providence S2) plays Li Chang Ru. The schtick is that she isn't nearly as pretty as Chang Le, but she really is. She's gorgeous.

Lee Hsin Ai (1931 Love Story) is Li Chang Le, the ultimate mean girl. She is stunningly gorgeous. And she is a self-absorbed Antoinetta. She wants what she wants and when she doesn't get what she wants she wants to go scorched earth on everything. She's not even that bright, but she still manages to do lots of damage. No matter how evil this character is, I loved the sound of the actress's voice. That's impressive.

Back to prince-ss Tuo Ba Di. She's the feisty type who shows love by way of pulling braids, shooting arrows at heads, and other abuse. Minde is /hit/. He's also utterly clueless. He still thinks the princess is a prince. If one watches Chinese dramas, one gets used to the way a woman can dress up as a man merely by changing her hairstyle or putting on a hat. They're always still so laughably and obviously female. It's something the audience is expected to roll with. When the princess is missing Minde, she starts yelling at him and threatening him in her head. She's intermittently threatening to beat him up and crying. Minde has a stunning emotional scene in episode 21. It's moving. He's quite the fighter too. He gets some of the best action scenes. The Director is Li Hui Zhu (Warm on a Cold Night) and the screenwriter is Cheng Ting Yu (The Sword and the Brocade-8.6).

As for a theme, Chinese historical features that involve palace intrigues have the common threads of pride and fear. “We can only be safe if we are victorious in the end,” Jun’s mother asserts. She's the crown princess and that's how she feels. It's very busy. So many plots. There's an immodest number of deaths. There's 4 weddings (one never got out of the planning stage) and too many funerals. Don't get too attached to anyone. A death or two in the later episodes made me very sad. Always watch the quiet ones.

The art of the show is very grand. The costumes are marvelous. Changle's wedding headdress is obnoxiously over-compensating and it suits the situation. Ep30 has a big battle scene in which 1000s of soldiers approach the old city. The music is good. The sets are gorgeous. The expansive halls lined with lacquered wood are so regal. I decided to ask an AI search engine about the process by which they produced lacquer. It's much more labor intensive than I realized.

“Ancient Chinese lacquer was made primarily from the sap of the lacquer tree (Toxicodendron vernicifluum), a process refined over millennia… The sap, called urushi, was collected by making incisions in the bark of lacquer trees, typically in summer when sap flow was strongest. Trees needed to be at least 10–15 years old, and only small amounts (about 200–300 grams per tree) could be harvested before the tree was exhausted… The raw sap, a grayish-white emulsion, was filtered to remove impurities like bark or debris. It was then stirred and heated gently (below 40°C) to evaporate excess water, creating a smooth, viscous lacquer. Sometimes, pigments like cinnabar (red) or carbon black were added for color… Lacquer was applied in thin layers to a substrate, usually wood, but also bamboo, cloth, or metal. Each layer (often 20–30 per object) was brushed on meticulously, requiring a dust-free environment and high humidity (70–80%) to cure properly. Each layer took days to harden through a chemical process called oxidative polymerization, triggered by the enzyme laccase in the sap… After each layer dried, it was polished with fine abrasives like charcoal or whetstone to achieve a glossy finish. The process was repeated for durability and depth, sometimes taking months for high-quality pieces...” It goes on. I have appreciation for these historical sets.

In the opening episodes it's obvious that this story is well written. The layout, the plot, the characters, and the dialogue are all smart. It does follow a familiar template, and it does wander too much. It is bittersweet. So is life. Overall, it's a worthy watch.


QUOTES🗣

Hatred often becomes the chains that pen us down.

Acting on impulse only brings failure.


IMHO〰🖍

📣8 📝8 🎭8.4 💓7 🦋5.5 🎨9 🎵/🔊8 🔚6.5 🤗7 ▪ 🌞4.5 ⚡6 😅2.5 😭4 😱2 😯3 🤢4 🤔5 💤0

Shazams:
天若有情 (電視劇《錦繡未央》主題曲), by A-Lin


Age 11+ Language: @$$hole ×1, b!+ch ×1; Rated - Teens 13 or older


Re-📺? The future is Hard to see





In order of ~lite & trite~ to ~heavy & serious~ you may also like:

🎎 -
The Sleepless Princess 9.1;
The Romance of Tiger and Rose 9.8;
Overlord 8.4,
Legend of the two sisters in chaos-7.7 (the ending is bittersweet),
Under the Power 8.6,
The Princess Royal-8.3,
The Rebel Princess 9.1,
The Sword and the Brocade 8.6 (in ancient Chinese opera style),
Ruyi's Royal love in the palace (episodes 1 - 49 are a 9.3. While looking up it's historical accuracy, I learned how heartbreaking the rest of the show is. It's over 80 episodes, so that's a hella-lotta hurt. I am not up for it now, so I stopped at episode 49, which is a perfect ending).
The Rise of Phoenixes 9


🔮🐉-
Love Between Fairy & Devil 8.9;
Douluo Continent 9.4;
Handsome Siblings 8.7;
Ancient Love Poetry 8.6;
Eternal Love Of dream-7.4 20
Love and Redemption 10

⚡/😱/🚀 -
House of Flying Daggers-8.5 04
Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber 9-Kung-fu!;
Bloody Romance-7.3 18


💘 -
Romance junkies only: Accidentally in Love-6.5 ‘18 B-level scripting, acting, and directing, but still fun/strangely relaxing to watch,
Well-Intended Love-7.5 Rom-porn - extra points for the dopamine but many object to an outrageous stunt the ML pulls,
Boss & Me-7
When I Fly Towards You-7.8,
You are my destiny-6.8 cute and sweet and 1/2 padding,
Meteor Garden-7.4 - 70% flowing 30% dragging and BOF is better,
Hidden Love-7.8

Read More

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!

Read More

This is the first time I have watched a drama with both Tiffany Tang and Luo Jin as leads,and I must say it was impressive.
It can be cited as a political drama with the female lead caught in a soup.Tiffany Tang,plays the role of Princess Weiyoung,whose family gets killed ruthlessly when she was Princess Xun er,and through a series of changes becomes Weiyoung.Here she meets Tuoba Jun,played by Luo Jin and both of them get entangled in various struggles,problems and difficulties.
Well,the drama is quite interesting.Though there may be some boring or dragging moments,it makes you watch it till the end.
I liked the acting of Luo Jin very much and Tiffany Tang was also good in her role.
The villains were vicious in nature and always try to create problems for Weiyoung and Tuoba Jun.This scheming process may become tiresome few times,but it is okay to watch it.
The costumes were good,sets and locations were also good.All the other actors were good too.Finally,it is a decent watch.

Read More

Second time watching and it did not hold up to scrutiny

Princess Wei Young was the second C drama I watched and I suspect the novelty of something other than Hollywood or franchise movies made this seem much more interesting than it actually is otherwise I wouldn't have given in to nostalgia and chosen to watch it again. First off, the lead characters were insufferable and whoever chose to have a whiny arse childish hero and a martyr complex heroine did us a disservice. By the time we reached the 25th episode most of the characteristics that I liked about the leads were reduced to them being/doing/speaking irrationally.

What the heck happened to Tuoba Jun and Wei Young? The initial 10 stars is now reduced to 3.5.

Read More

A rather disappointing series despite the casting.

I made the mistake of watching this series just after "The rebel princess" (with a top cinematic quality)... Suddenly, everything seemed cheap: the costumes, the abuse of the green screen for outdoor filming, choreographies with cables, etc.

PLOT: The FL, princess of a kingdom decimated following a conspiracy and the last survivor of the family, joins the neighboring kingdom to take revenge. She claims to be one of the Prime Minister's daughters. She meets (again) the ML, imperial grandson, who cannot help but come to her aid when she is in danger. They will gradually fall in love, but have to face multiple obstacles and struggles for power, to survive and be together.

PROS:
+ An epic saga with 54 episodes.
+ very good actors and lots of endearing characters
+ the OSTs accompany the emotions well.
+ an almost realistic and credible story

BUT
### cheap costumes & very abusive use of cables
### slow narration. OK, the journey to power is long, but the series lacks rhythm => so, I followed certain narrative arcs in dotted lines.
### I can understand the excessive ambition of some characters, but I'm frankly fed up with stubborn "one-side" lovers despite repeated rejections...
### some characters are not credible: the angry emperor, the evil "super warrior" Chi Yun Nan, etc.
### I don't know if it's the subtitles' fault, but a lot of dialogue seems flat, even offbeat.

=> I will not rewatch this series, which for my part, I found rather disappointing despite the casting.

*********************************************************
J'ai fait l'erreur de regardé cette série juste après "The rebel princess" (d'une qualité cinématographique) ... Du coup, tout parait cheap : les costumes, l'utilisation du fonds vert pour les tournages en extérieur, les chorégraphies avec câbles, etc.

PLOT: La FL, princesse d'un royaume décimé à la suite d'une conspiration et dernière survivante de la famille, rejoint le royaume voisin pour se venger. Elle prétend être une des filles du 1e ministre. Elle rencontre (à nouveau) le ML, petit-fils impérial, qui ne peut pas s'empêcher de venir à son secours quand elle est en danger. Ils vont peu à peu tomber amoureux, mais devront affronter de multiples obstacles et les luttes pour le pouvoir, pour survivre et être ensemble.
PROS:
+ grande saga de 54 épisodes, épique.
+ de très bons acteurs et beaucoup de personnages attachants
+ les OST accompagnent bien les émotions.
+ une story à peu prés réaliste et crédible

### costumes cheap & usage très abusif des câbles
### narration lente. OK, le parcours est long vers le pouvoir, mais la série manque de rythme => du coup, j'ai suivi certains arcs narratifs en pointillés.
### Je peux comprendre l'ambition démesurée de certains personnages, mais j'en ai franchement marre des amoureux "one-side" obstinés malgré les rejets à répétition ...
### certains personnages ne sont pas crédibles : l'empereur colérique, le "super guerrier" evil Chi Yun Nan, etc.
### je ne sais pas si c'est la faute des subtitles, mais beaucoup de dialogues paraissent plats, voire décalés.

=> je ne revisionnerai pas à nouveau cette série, que pour ma part j'ai trouvé plutôt décevante malgré le casting.

Read More

Good actors, poor everything else

This is another case of the Chinese actor being abused, forced to acting inside a terrible script and likewise directing .
Up to episode 30 or so there was still some action, but after that both scriptwriter and director gave up.
So, instead of action, we get repetitive scenes of one main character after a another speaking to themselves or their helpers, at best, describing action, instead of inacting it.
We also get some beautiful sound tracks, that are used and abused on full blast in each and every episode so that actors voices are almost always covered up.
Then you have the complete nonsense of characters having a conversation in one set and then continue it in another set, or even a different season. You know, the kind of different one cannot escape from noticing, since the dialogue starts in sunny, golden fall and ends, a few lines down the road, in bitter snowy winter.
You know the kiss of death came to the scriptwriter when he or she uses and abuses the "by the way" introduction of dialogue.
That came about by the same time with the other signs that imagination and professionalism were slowly dying.
Anyway, the real history seems far more interesting than the made up plot of two women obsessed with killing the third, as their perceived rival .

Read More