The Autumn Ballad (2022)

unexpectedly better than i expected

wasn't intending to start on this at first, but the online responses for the first 8 eps was great and hence i decided to give it a try. i had watched some past works of jeremy (legend of dugu) & qiao xin (ode to joy 1-3). i rmb really liking jeremy's villian role in legend of dugu ?? anyway, long story short i would say overall it's kinda an underdog drama. The productions isn't very extensive for this production, and it's also evident from the props and overall script and writing. So being able to gain some attention for it (and milking the popularity after) says alot.

STORY
As in many cdramas historical works, it always portray a female lead that's smart, or at least more opinionated, and then being bounded by familial responsibilities /gender discrimination kinda set up. and of course most of the times, there's gonna be male lead falling for this "different" kind of lady they have ever met.

I would say the overall gist is similar but also different. Qiu Yan here, as a concubine's daughter (similar to Legend of Minglan) we are expecting much difficulties, being female + unfavoured (since not Di). Despite that, its a refreshing twist that Qiu Yan is favored by her non-biological mum (aka the Di Mother) but despised by her own biological mother.. i think it's the first time i seen this in a cdrama female centric plot drama. Really touched her mum provided her with what she needs and allowed her to be expressive of her ideas. Unlike other female concubine daughter characters, Qiu Yan is very vocal, opinionated and has a goal of her own - to explore the world. Of course a series of things happened, from jinxing her husband to be to death, passing of Di Mother, downfall of Qiu manor, becoming an escapee, becoming an artisan to Liang Yi's concubine everntually etc.

So in all this there's also our male lead, Liang Yi i would say quite a typical male lead set up, cold, ruthless, capable with also family revenge agenda on his back. He meets a woman like no other aka Qiu Yan, and it doesn't help they become loggerheads and his best friend is in love with her. For political purposes he also proposes to marry QY's sister, Qiu Min. but alot the way through the various cases they somehow get entangled in together, LY grows a liking to her. He also belatedly finds out that they had a connection when they were young,

Overall it's a refreshin plot, but honestly, i am disappointed in the development of the second half of the story, which is the problem for many cdramas, especiall those with more episodes...i will just list some points/ loopholes i feel iffy about:

Characters:
- QY character: don't get me wrong, i like her in general, but in some instances i really didnt like her. Like especially how she treats her sister, QM. I mean her intentions were valid, but i still feel it was harsh...
- LY character: i would say it's typical, was hoping more development or story for him.
-QX charactrer: i would say he is the most pitiful one...
-QM: feel bad for her, but sometimes she just needs to tough up bcs she's annoying for me..

Plot
- the whole su yi wan subplot. like right til the end there was no clear up or explanation for this fake identity?
- song jin's death: he honestly didnt have to die??
- qiu min& qin xuan: so after QM saves QY from an arrow, he starts to accept her? idk but am i missing out something?
- truth behind liang yi's dad death: seriously the ending was liek too rushed wtf? like qiu yan lying that she killed her mum what not. i honestly felt that was so inconsistent with qiu yan's character lol... what noble idiocy is this... thats very out of her character LOL

I liked the show probably up to the halfway mark? but the whole story just drags out with not much development / sweet scenes actually. but given it being an original production, i would say it's not bad.

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Male lead of the year and more

I am gonna rate it 10 now, and bet, that after the series finishes airing, I am not gonna change this rating.

I would say "watch this drama for its male lead", but actually there are many, many reasons to watch this drama, so let's just start with the MALE LEAD.
This is a proof that male lead in Chinese historical drama can be not stone-faced and cold, and still radiate enormous quantity of testosterone. He is hot, strong, smart, seductive as a devil, but he doesn't hide his feelings. He is not the nicest person at first, his job demands him to be tough, but even in the first episodes you can see he has a good sense of humor. Later you will laugh like hell while watching his comic scenes with the FL. Moreover, this amazing man talks with his real voice here, and it's sooo sexy.

GOOD PACING. Drama has very good pacing and is plot driven. Characters seem to be in constant movement, one case/trouble follows another, all interactions are dynamic, sad scenes are sometimes followed by funny ones, so some episodes are a roller-coaster of emotions.

SMART FEMALE LEAD. Many dramas declare having a smart female lead, but very few manage to actually make her equal to the male lead. Here they are equally smart, he is just a bit more experienced. She escapes many troubles alone, and there is no feeling, that whatever bad is happening to FL, suddenly ML will just fall from the sky and save her. But sometimes he comes and saves, yes ;)
Some viewers called FL selfish, and it's true she cares about her own wellbeing and is not ready to sacrifice herself for the sake of the family, especially when it's her family which threw her under the train. Later on FL's relationships with her family will have a nice development, and at certain point you won't be able to call her selfish anymore.

VERY GOOD SCRIPT. Investigations are quite good, full of twists, and many of them you would never see coming. Dialogues are brilliant, and not once you will notice how creators were getting close to the trap of one or another cliche and then just avoided it with a stylish maneuver. Many times I noticed that a typical scene, which I saw many times in other dramas, here developed totally different, yet still exciting. Some misunderstandings which for sure would happen in other dramas in similar situation - here never happened.

Need more reasons? AMAZING CHEMISTRY between the main leads. All their scenes are exciting and give you butterflies, even though this is a slow burn and it will take them time to fall in love and then to confess, but for me this is one of the most believable romance developments I've seen. They even don't like each other at first and it's also believable, I would call it a rational prejudice. Although they are wrong about each other, they still talk and act very honest, and it takes a few episodes to bring their relationships to another level. Unlike other dramas with enemies-to-lovers scheme, where leads pretend to have another personality and hide their true motives and feelings, here leads always stay true to their personalities, and never act weird just to annoy another person.
Oh, btw, it does remind "Pride & Prejudice" a bit.

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Important warning: non graphic r**pe happens in episode 19 to one of the ladies of FL's family.

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The things that might scare you in the beginning:
- FL's huge family - you are gonna hate them at first, but just give them time, some of them will die, the rest will redeem themselves a bit.
- Not always perfect delivery of lines. Actors speak their own voices here, which is a rare thing, so production might have faced some troubles, but let's support them, I want to hear real voices more often! Also, we are so lucky to hear ML's fantastic voice.
- FL is manipulative, especially towards SML - that's true, at least in the beginning, but please try to understand what she was going through in those first episodes.
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So, GO AND WATCH NOW and suffer with us, while waiting for next episodes to air.

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As much as I wanted to like this drama, there are too many ridiculous, illogical and nonsensical scenes that made this drama unbearable. Although the drama has a seemingly cold male lead, his character is truly soul-stirring, loving, caring, and the most understanding of them all. The female lead, under the pretense of been a feminist, comes out as selfish, shallow, and unable to fully love the male lead. As a detective type drama, the leading couple has smart deductible thinking and good chemistry; as a romantic drama, it’s dull and tedious to watch. Then the last episode tops it all with the most absurd twist that leaves the viewer frustrated and balked.

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A Drama so Bad Even Writer Apologized

The main actress to this drama described it as "bittersweet at the beginning and then it becomes sweet like boba tea"

I would like to report, someone took my boba tea and splashed it on my face. Dear goodness. The end.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. This is a drama that is best explained by it's three acts. It starts off as an EXCELLENT detective costume drama. The cases are really interesting and the interplay of the cast is well done. Second act is a mix of pride and prejudice and midsummer night's dreams. It's an interplay of lovers that makes you want to shout at the screen. GOOD. Then act three it's just all these amazing characters RUINED. It's the most uncharacteristic developments of each character that you stop watching with sadness. WHY?

This drama really shines with the ML. His voice is silky velvet and when he yells or uses lower tones. You'll replay it as it just sounds like music. His costumes are the highest quality -- allegedly borrowed -- but still better than the cheap stuff everyone else is wearing. FL has some nice ones too. But his sharp wit and tricks they play with each other is where you'll really stop and stare and recall your own family squabbles. He shines the most as a henpecked son and partner to the female lead and his mother and when he's blissfully smiling between them. It's really adorable.

FL on the other hand also has some golden moments. Of course she makes silly mistakes that put ML in peril, but he falls in love with her anyways. Her intial outfits are simple and unassuming, but you're focused on her dialog and how she articulates herself with the mysteries as the ML takes her through his job as inspector. There is a mutual trust that builds up which is believable upto episode 23.

Intimacy wise. There is your typical fish face kisses. But the charge is there when they are playing house and solving cases. His love for her is apparant in long stares and his icy personality is spot on before act three. I was upset but not surprised that the tone died as the relationship progressed.

If you're in the mood for intellect watch episodes up to 28. Also there are some full extra scenes on the tencent youtube channel that are randomly up there but essential.

I hope for second 2 to redeem Liang Yi and get more of his beautiful voice.

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One of the most underrated series so far...

Right, I wont write a long-ass essay for the review but, all I can say is it's nice how this is fast-paced and not too much drama about female exes or whatnot. I loved how cleverly they solve each cases and how the female lead was made to portray as a strong one who redeemed her family when they fell from grace. Some twists are unexpectable and they really got me racking my brains for possible answers and further clues. Jeremy Tsui's acting surprised me here, he proved he can show versatility in his facial expressions and it's really refreshing to see. When he smiles, he reminds me of Lee Dong Wook haha

Anyway, the series was arguably good as I found myself doing super few skips on some episodes. If there's one thing I didn't like, was how the writers unnecessarily inserted a negative twist in the last episode which made the happy ending not totally satisfying. Why on earth reveal that Liang Yi's mother voluntarily poisoned the old marquis when its already established that the noble consort did it out of fear that her Northern Liang lineage would be revealed? I find it useless. Qiu Yan and Liang Yi could have gotten a few more screen time to enjoy their happiness at last, but it was jammed into one scene by making them reunite in that same peak. They also left the guessing with the audiences how Liang Yi was able to appear as if Qiu Yan hadn't lied about his mother's death. Hope these writers could stop doing that in series.

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Writing, It Turns Out, Is Not That Simple

The Autumn Ballad wishes to be a classic tale of family intricacies, power and corruption, mystery and love, but hitting all separate points does not a good story make. An extremely promising first part somehow ends as a series of happenstances so random and unbelievable that it feels parodic.

I want to focus here on 3 aspects of Qiu Yan's character: her relationships with her sister, her mother, and with Liang Yi.

Her relationship with Liang Yi remains the best of all 3, but not for the reasons it should. The pacing of meeting each other, disliking each other, relying on each other, and all the way to being in love / realizing the other is in love, is impeccable at first and very correct later on. The chemistry is here, the tempers, body languages, conflicts and devotions, are lovely. Things such as asking her to come with him, never acting dominantly, never trying to make her stay, are what i was looking forward to, and i was satisfied. It fits with the view we originally have of them both: Qiu Yan as a headstrong girl always hiding under a layer of defiance, Liang Yi as a usually cold man who cares very little for affection and who recovers his tenderness and mischievous side.

Qiu Yan's relationship with her mother was hinted from the beginning to be a big part of her emotional burdens and the source of her resentment. It follows through as such, the (lack of) development is logical and the last scene they share is wonderful because Qiu Yan refuses to simply forgive and forget. But this conflict brimming with story potential is simply left to stew in a corner, nearly-untouched, but for the 3 or 4 scenes it is given, which makes me wonder—was its climax good on purpose, or just because the writers didn't pay enough attention to it to mess it up?

But by far the most disappointing part of this drama is Qiu Yan and Qiu Min's relationship. Once again beautifully introduced as a delicate dynamic: Qiu Yan convinced that Qiu Min hates her, angry and worried at once to see her act so meekly; Qiu Min envious of her older sister who seems so capable and smart, who captured her mother's love, but who also exists as a protective shadow that she doesn't want to live.
They have so many of those delicate and beautiful scenes. Qiu Min asking Qiu Yan to hug her, and Qiu Yan holding back because she wants Qiu Min to learn to be on her own, is only the most memorable one. And I was so hopeful about how they would develop that I kept up hope even after the base cliché of sexual assault as a lesson to the maudlin and selfish girl; even with her "turning dark", I was hopeful; because I knew that it could be so good, if only all of this was focused on the sisters' relationship. As you probably guessed, it didn't happen. Qiu Min becomes a cheap rival love interest antagonist whose entire character is dedicated to making the viewer feel satisfied when her petty attempts fail. Even the excellent parting line, "I was so jealous of you, I forgot that I used to like you," can't simply fix this disaster.

I will spare you all from just how ridiculous the actual plot becomes, because I could write a whole review on how absurd the last episode was. In the end, what to take out of The Autumn Ballad? It's not the sort of drama you can watch "just for the romance"; the romance is good only because you go through the plot alongside it, and as the plot becomes offensively bad, the romance alone can't satisfy a viewer. At least not this viewer. The show is a mess, and in my opinion, the mess is due in part to its length. The plot, once rearranged, could've been beautifully wrapped up in 25 episodes. Alas, quality is never the only goal in a drama production.

Wanting to fill the afforded space is not that simple—especially not when you aim for this setting and deal with delicate characters. Good writing also means knowing how to prune the branches of a story.

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A hidden gem

I feel like The Autumn Ballad is one of those little hidden historical C drama gems that needs to have more viewership.

The best part of the drama was probably Jeremy Tsui's real voice. He's always dubbed with someone with a deeper voice and to actually hear how he really sounds, I felt like his character had better depth and range. It's fairly high pitched, but it's so different, I liked it in the end.

I thought the chemistry between the main leads was very good. I also loved Qiao Xin's voice and she did complete justice to her character. She was strong, smart and very independent. I liked her character a lot and it's a new trend in these C dramas, so keep up with this fierce FL roles please!

I thought the first 30 episodes were the best part of the series. There was a great slow burn between the leads. I loved the way the two of them paired up to investigate and solve mysteries together. They were very smart and it was easy and fun to watch.

Like most C dramas, a lot of stuff and external factors always happens in the last few episodes, but I really feel like that shouldn't shadow most of the series which has been perfect so far.

Overall, it's a witty drama with great chemistry between the leads. A drama worth watching.

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Tragically Beautiful

I just finished Autumn Ballad and all I can say is, what a tragically beautiful work. Beautiful but tragic.

The ML and FL were both very mature in their outlook of life and even their relationship wasn't sudden or random. It happened over time, like most relationships. They grew to love each other for each other's quirks and character and understood each other's weaknesses and strengths. I loved how the FL was the absolute star of the show and grew to earn everyone's respect. She didn't have respect straight away, but she had to earn it and I think that makes it much more meaningful.

The main plot and sub-plots were pretty tight (except for towards the end) and very interesting and I loved the character development in the key characters. This was such a refreshing change from watching the complete shit show Rebirth for You which was also supposedly about a ML and FL working together against adversity. Autumn Ballad had plot twists almost every episode and some I really didn't see coming.

There are so so many layers to this show. The theme of abandonment. The theme of revenge and forgiveness The theme of love and what it really means and how you define it. They played out so well in this show. This show can be compared to Allen Ren's Under The Power (although I have a slight preference for Under The Power just because of their epic fight scenes and Allen Ren is incredible as an actor - but I digress).

The Theme of Abandonment was played out constantly. Almost every character faces their own dark demons of abandonment. Whether from loved ones dying (murder / suicide) or just being abandoned and unwanted and tossed aside as a child. Qiu Yan references her being abandoned by her birth mother constantly throughout the show. It was a real sticking point for her and her birth mother. Her mother (the legitimate wife of Qiu Yi) and her shared a common bond of being abandoned (just that Qiu Yan didn't know this until it was too late). Liang Yi was abandoned by his father when his father died and they talked about him being completely different before and after his father's death. Even Qiu Min had to deal with her own abandonment issues and those issues really came out towards the end. Throughout the series they extrapolate this theme of abandonment and how people deal with the insecurities that stem from it wonderfully.

The Theme of Revenge and Forgiveness. Constantly, Liang Yi talks about revenging his father's death (which he did), Qiu Yan carries her burden of her mother's death and is also constantly looking to settle the score against anyone who crosses her, Qiu Min is also constantly burdened with her own demons and Yuan Long is like the personification of revenge. Even the lesser characters are constantly out for revenge. But then the show demonstrates that there to gain from revenge and revenge just leads to misery. To me, the purest character is Qin Xuan who literally could not hate anyone even though he was constantly being made use of. Yes he tried to hate, but he never took revenge. He was full of forgiveness.

The Theme of Love. There were so many interesting layers to his. The Confucian filial piety of love for one's elders was constantly played out in this show (I guess as in most costume dramas). Of course romantic love. Also, Qiu Yan talks about her own feelings and what she thought was love and what she then discovered was true love. Finally, the final scene made me think that there was some sort of love going on between Liang Yi's mother and the Noble Consort. I am very sure they were more than just best friends. And finally love for country was there. Without going into further detail, it was how Liang Yi appealed to Yuan Long, or Noble Consort appealed to Liang Yi etc...

Yes, most dramas cover these key themes but I feel Autumn Ballad did it well. The writing was very solid and well thought through. The dialogue was good as well. Even the OST was really nice.

I didn't have many issues with the show. The show was fast-paced, well executed, well written and well acted.

But ok, I realised I have three.

First, one minor issue I had was with Liang Yi's MUA. Did he/she not colour match the foundation to his face?? He kept looking so pale and cake-y throughout the entire show it was almost comical!!!!

Also like other reviewers, I was also pretty annoyed by the absolute final plot twist. I mean can't you let them just have peace for 1 second!?!? Although it did show a happy ending in the end FINALLY, the last plot twist was unnecessary and actually gave me a shock. It did also leave me with a lot of question marks. Like why did the person choose to do that only at the very last moment? And she looked perfectly fine and happy before. Even though I truly think the screenwriters were great, they should learn the value of restraint!! Too many plot twists is also not good! Also it seemed like they were probably riding on a high of plot twists by then. The end just pissed me off honestly. And it was out of character of Qiu Yan to do what she did. Like what happened to my fate is your fate!?!?

Finally, since we are talking about what happened in the last few minutes of the show... What's up with all the suicides and people dying?!?! The show is obsessed with death. OBSESSED. And it is obsessed with killing people off for no reason. There were so many unnecessary deaths. You didn't need to kill all these people to propel the story line forward but they did. I mean in the beginning already they kept trying to bury Qiu Yan with the "dead on arrival" groom. It's like literally every character is murder, tried to be murdered, tried to suicide or dies by suicide.

Overall, besides those annoyances, it really was a spectacular tragic romance drama and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes romances!

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Could Have Been So Much Better

Where to begin with this one? ML was ok in my mind, I did not find him as attractive as most people did. He seemed a little flat and boring to me. The FL I found a bit annoying but ok at the beginning. As the story progressed she did fall into the typical c-drama pitfall of overacting; espcecially her crying scenes. There were way to many of them in my opinion. The chemistry between the leads was cute and funny for the first 20 or so episodes and I really enjoyed their push/pull relationship. I began to get a little tired of their relationship towards the end, particularly the female lead and her attitude and mood swings. She was all over the place and the gratuitous sex before she left the first time really irritated me. The second ML was typical of cdramas, he was the good guy/boring/never does anything wrong/just does not stand out type. The sister of the FL was just a horrible human being. I can not stand people who are their own constant pity party and blame everyone else for their own shortcomings. The cinematography was good, OST ok. Then we get to the ending which in my opionion ruined the whole story and made me angry I wasted 34 hours of my time. It also fell into typical cdrama trope land with a lot of unnecessary deaths/plot twists. Do the writers not understand that sometimes less is more? I tend to not read reviews before I watch a show; wierd right? I guess I really want to form my own opinion without outside interference. I then go read the reviews to see if many of my thoughts were validated . They certainly were for this show. Many people seemed to hate the ending of this show. With good reason I might add. All in all it was entertaing and funny thru the first 23/24 episodes and then it got really boring. If they had made the show 30 episodes they might have saved it but 34 was to many. I say watch if you have free time and nothing else on your watch list.

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Flawless actors, amazing chemistry, smart female lead

After a long time, I loved watching a chinese series where the Female ain't dumb or hypocritical kind types especially the ones who tolerate evil not because they are good but because they choose to be too weak. Most cdramas portrait women as either naive/ dumb / cinderella types waiting for their prince Charming to rescue them. Surprisingly, the female lead here is sorted, independent, can make her way out of any dangerous puzzle . Depending on the situation, She knows when to pull a gun or present a flower. Story is intriguing and has interesting plots at every step, yet it has the right balance of light hearted comic timing..Most importantly, both male and female leads have really good acting skills. I dont understand why is this drama so underrated. Even with his cold aura, Liang yi is devilishly handsome and cute at the same time. Don't miss this!!

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i happen to stumble upon it and fall in love with it.

i like this. i dont know any of the cast and ive never heard of this drama. i happen to stumble upon it and fall in love with it. I love Qiu yan, Liang Yi, Song Jin, Qin xuan and the others character.

I love how messy the qiu family is, from the uncles, aunties and to the siblings and somehow them ended up being very close because they went trough hell together. The confessing scene and all with qiu yi and his brother. How Liang yi and qiu yan slowly but surely fell in love, i love their chemistry so much. Literally everything. I wouldn't even expect to like a character that was the main villain 90% of the time which is Yuan Lang. You somehow love character you find annoying in the beginning. Like Qiu Mei, Qiu Ying, they contribute in the escape plan a lot. Their bond as a family just became stronger after each and every problem.

And mostly the thing that kept me hooked is the mystery aspect. Playing detective is literally my cup of tea, so its not weird for me to loveeeee this series. But i like every case. Its very smart, they are all very smart tbh, even Yuan Lang. I am also a person who loves plot twist, so that adds to the point.

This drama is also very funny, i found myself laughing myself off a lot, this drama has humor and the mystery, but this drama also made me shed some tears but dont worry it wont be something too major. (maybe??)

I guess i have to mention qiu min, i like her in the beginning but she went downhill for me after her being very scheming and all. she may redeemed herself a little bit, but drugging somebody and taking advantage of them will always be wrong. what more in the name of "love" thats basically r4p3. that one point wont be redeemable tho. but her character did improve on the very end ig...

Qin Xuan is just a pitiful lamb, i dont think i can say much more lol.

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