This review may contain spoilers
This is a good fantasy period piece. The plot is solid and interesting. This drama has action, revenge, friendship, royal family feuds, and a leading couple that is fun to watch. The actors were not great delivering their characters but there are moments that allow the viewer to see their acting progress and potential. The leading couple showed good chemistry development throughout the drama but, for been so deeply in love, their intimate moments lacked credibility; it was more a deep self-sacrificing loving relationship that developed through their association than an ardent romance. The drama would’ve been better if it was done with fewer episodes since the story dragged marred by repetition of incidents and the overuse of flashbacks. Still, it is a nice drama to watch while waiting for a great one to come! *Although the end is ambiguous, it is up to the viewer to believe that she took her bracelet back from her friend Gu Qi Shao! ; ) Was this review helpful to you?
One of the good period drama to watch
The plot is interesting and most of the actors have done great job especially the male lead, Zhang Zhehan. He is talented with incredible skills: acting, singing, sports etc. The chemistry between the two main leads is perfect, fightiing scenes are well done and the theme song very beautiful. Only some details in the series that are quite annoying like Gu Qishao and Ming Xiang who chase too much after the main leads as if they were blind not seeing that Long Feiye and Yunxi were married and how much love between them.. Besides, Yunxi’s clothes are not good enough for her position as consort.Overall, it’s worth to watch
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Best drama EVER
This is the very first C-drama when I started watching Chinese dramas about 2 years ago... And also the best drama i've watched so far.To be honest, I didn't understand the drama at all when I first watched it but when I understood it, it felt very touching.
Especially the ending OST ' Tan YunXi (叹云兮) ' is extremely touching.
I'll only say a single sentence about my jie @ Ju Jingyi. : She is really, really good.
About ZZH, I don't have any opinion on him.
All in all, this is a top drama and worth watching many times over and over again (i've watched it 6 times)!
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The plot was fine until the last ~10 episodes where things became convoluted. I also admittedly skimmed through a lot of the emperor and harem parts, and some of the various princes' scenes, because clearly I was here for the romance. Aside from the lead couple, I enjoyed Ning Jing and Tang Li's storyline - maybe she was a little over-the-top at times but they were a funny and cute pair. I loved Xi Feng, because I can never resist a loyal right-hand man. I didn't care for Qi Shao either way, but I disliked him in the end when he tried to make Yun Xi's choice for her.
Speaking of the ending, I have to say that I prefer the epilogue episode 50 version of the ending. I find the actual ending too contrived. Still, overall I loved this drama and I couldn't stop watching it!
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Head-over-heels in love with this! Cried out like a river and swooned like a teenager! LOL
What made this drama most special for me was that it really hit me hard I couldn't imagine it would. The storyline maybe long and seemingly complex at the start with all the politics ; but, it's all worth it as how the story develops! The main leads chemistry is undeniably strong I find them so perfect! Casting truly plays a significant role in a romance drama and the team did a perfect job here! I recall started watching this drama at night and when I reached ep3 during the main leads first encounter, I couldn't stop anymore LOL.This is my all-time fave!
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This review may contain spoilers
So many emotions after watching this show. Wow. I’ll be blunt and say that this drama took me a while to finish. It was not something that I could continuously just binge. I had to binge a few episodes, take a couple days or a week off, and then binge some more. This drama started off very well, lost me a bit in the middle, and then picked it back up towards the end. I liked the interactions between both the main male lead/ female lead and 2nd lead/female lead. I liked the character progression between both sets and the way the writers fleshed it out. One thing I will say is that this drama had a more realistic love story progression when compared to other Chinese period historical dramas. The leads had an arranged marriage that was set by the emperor’s mother and their love story progressed AFTER their marriage. While some people may not like this, I thought the direction that the writers took it in was good.
The actors portrayed their roles very well. You could see Yun Xi’s growing admiration + love for Long Fei Ye, Fei Ye’s jealousy whenever Yun Xi interacted with Gu Qi Shao, and Gu Qi Shao’s unattainable yet irrevocable love for Yun Xi. The chemistry between all of the leads was great and that’s part of the reason I continued to watch beyond the first few episodes. The side couples (Tang Li and Ninjing) also had great chemistry, especially towards the end. The main reason that I said that the ending recaptured my interest was because of this pair. Their interactions, and Tang Li finally realizing that he loved Ninjing was probably one of my top scenes in this show. The villains did their job well and made us all hate them and root for their downfall. The side characters (nanny Zhao, Fei Ye’s mother, Xifeng) all did their role and helped move along the plot in a positive direction.
The music for the most part was great as well. The actress that played the female lead (Ju Jing Yi) sang the main songs and they were absolutely beautiful. I actually went and purchased the songs on iTunes so that I could listen to them whenever I wanted to. However, there is this one bit of retro music (you’ll know it when you here it) that was played at random intervals and scenes that ruined the scenes a bit and took away the attention from the actual drama.
However, I think it’s only fair that I address the weak points of this drama as well for this to be an honest review. There were more than a few WTF moments in this drama. Scenes were Yun Xi JUST forgave Fei Ye with no explanation whatsoever and got mad at other characters for smaller reasons or scenes were the solution would just magically appear in a rushed way, or scenes where there was so much miscommunication and lack of conversation between the lead pair and the side pairs are just a few examples. These scenes, while they didn’t ruin the drama for me, definitely made the drama a bit annoying to watch. I also wish there were more cute moments between the main leads. I am not saying to make every episode all romantic and cute, but I would’ve liked more interactions between the leads instead of having like 5 episodes at a time where they wouldn’t talk to one another or be in the same vicinity as each other.
All in all, I think everyone should give this drama a chance. A lot of people don’t want to start watching it because of the ending. If that is the reason, it shouldn’t stop you. The one good thing about this ending is that you can essentially pick your ending. If you want closure, watch EP. 50 ending on YouTube (sad ending). If you want a happy yet ambiguous ending, watch EP. 48 on YouTube. If you want a happy and more explained ending (which is what I chose) watch EP. 49 on YouTube that includes the bracelet explanation.
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if you're reading this wondering if you should watch, i think you should! this isn't the kind of drama i usually watch, actually i think this is my first time watching this kind of drama, and i enjoyed it very much.
there are so many things i was thinking when i was about writing my review but now i find it hard to put in words how much i loved this drama. from the plot to the characters to the music it was really fun to watch (even though i cried a lot) and 48 episodes didn't feel long at all. there are some parts that are a little bit boring and also a lot of sad stuff that i found unnecessary and that's why i am giving it a 8.5 overall.
but still, i strongly recommend it to anyone! also the main couple is one of the cutest i've seen; they have a beautiful relationship despite of going through so much to be together. i love them very much ^^
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I really liked how the main lead (Yun Xi) has a specialty with poison and is able to stand up for herself based on this ability. She has the guts to do what she thinks she's right and she doesn't need a man to block all the arrows for her. Even so, it's still so heart-warming when the Duke comes to help her :").
Every episode contains something important and is worth watching every minute of it. To me, Yun Xi's ability to transform the Duke from being cold-hearted and domineering to a caring husband is the most... interesting. This may be because of Zhang Zhe Han's acting, which is really commendable. His eyes gave me the feeling that he is a very distant person with a lot of secrets (and I guess that's true).
This drama has piqued my interest and I'm currently reading the Chinese book - ????? Comparatively, to the drama, the book is much more exciting (and complicated) due to the long story plot. If you're missing Yun Xi and Fei Ye, try reading the book!
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This review may contain spoilers
Plot holes galore
There's a dearth of good historical palace dramas which is why I latched on to this after it popped up on many lists of dramas to watch. Initially, I liked the plot and how the main leads were introduced to the audience, however, by episode 20, everything felt flat, repetitive, and stupid. In particular, I disliked the actress who played the female lead (a character that seemed to lose brain cells as the drama progressed) who is one of these fluffy, limp noodle actresses who litter the c drama landscape like a weed. She's not pretty and her acting is laughable. Seriously, I wonder how the female industry veterans feel having to watch these no-talent, stick-thin barbies get multiple jobs. Aside from the FL, there were many characters who either overacted (i.e the Emperor) while some were clearly coasting (the guy who played the Crown Prince).Why is it so difficult to find solid palace dramas with smart/intelligent heroines?
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Watchable..., if you have a memory of a goldfish.
General plot was not bad, liked the medicine magic, revenge plot palatable, fighting, - everything started off not bad at all.Also liked the set, colourful but not blinding.
Bothers - some bad CGI, over acting, .. WAY too long with not enough content.
They crammed about 30 episodes of filler nonsense which made most characters irritating and irrelevant at the end.
Mr Male lead, you were okay at first and almost pulled the 'cold emotionless whatever' off., but sadly, without enough depth, bad editing and too many episodes, you. ended up as a boring magazine cover block of stupid.
Is this the standard of television dramas? where they drag the airing out so much that they think the audience would not notice the rinse and repeats .. till you end up with bland teabag of crap?
I CANT.
One of the top examples of good plot start, overkill, nonsensical bad acting and dialogue.
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