Kill Me Love Me

Loved it but unnecessary tearjerker ?

So, this was the first drama I've watched in a while. I watched this without knowing much about the story, so I was really excited about the revenge assassin, enemies to lovers, type of show, but it fizzles out after the first few episodes. I LOVEDDD Mei Lin acting as an assassin and trying to seduce Murong Jing He, but that tension dies out quickly, and they're just partners working together to get revenge, which is okay, but all that tension they had in the first few episodes goes away and they're just like...coworkers.

There were a couple of unsatisfying parts of the show, which include:

General Yin deeply falling in love with the crown prince. She loved Murong Jing He for so long yet quickly moves on to the crown prince after she sees the room he dedicated to her? Like okay, but bffr.

The crown prince dying--Mei Lin wanted to kill the real Qingzhou mass murderer or at least see him die, but instead of Mei Lin (the main character, mind you) getting what she wishes for, the crown prince gets a nice, comfy death as he's straddled in the arms of the one he loves. Like, he didn't even show remorse at the end, he said some bs like "Oh General Yin if only we were together earlier [I may not have turned out like this." LIKE?!?!?! That made me mad.

All of the side characters dying--I think another thing is, the side characters weren't developed enough for me to be really sad when they died. Also, I already knew Concubine Yan would die when they showed that slow mo shot of her in the first few episodes. I was really sad when Qingyan died though. Also A-Wei. The writers didn't need to do that to me.

Last, but not least--KILLING MEI LIN?!?!? Like I have dried up tears and snot on my face because the writers wanted to fuck around and kill her off WHEN IT DOESNT EVEN HAPPEN IN THE ORIGINAL NOVEL 😭😭 When Jing He and Mei Lin were finally together, it was really satisfying to see them come full circle in their journey together. But seeing them have such a short amount of time with each other really made me sob. But I sobbed in vain because the novel allegedly has a happy ending. w h a t

Here's some satisfying parts: the first few episodes

All in all, I spent a week pushing back assignments to watch this show, and...it ended up being okay.

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Lovebirds that are not meant to Grow Old Together

I was contemplating to start on this one because Wu Jinyan's character in The Double didn't give me much of a good impression, but eventually decided to get on with it anyway because the novel was good. It is basically about the assassin FL whose mission was to kill the ML, solely driven by the urge to avenge her parents because ML had been the general fighting off kingdom's enemy in her hometown Qingzhou which later burnt down, killing her parents in it. Little did she know, it turned out he was the one who called for the assassination of himself to frame the evil Crown Prince as he was trying to avenge his army who died in Qingzhou after being framed of burning down the whole town. ML lived for 10 years carrying this guilt and labelled as "The General who Killed All". When FL realized ML wasn't the one who burnt down her hometown and killed her parents, she shifted her objective somewhere else - the real culprit - which of course aligns with ML's own objective so they ended up becoming partners instead of enemies. So they kinda worked together to bring down the Crown Prince, as of course fell in love with each other in the process.

Honestly, the first 2/3 of the story was definitely good despite it being totally different from the novel, all the power struggle shows how brilliant the ML, Murong Jinghe, and how resilient the FL, Mei Lin is. However, after 24 episodes of engaging plot, it took a total nosedive from there on. With the Crown Prince out of the picture, the story became bland with just inner struggle of the feelings of each FL, ML and SML. From a ruthless, brilliant strategist, ML became a lovesick puppy who spent his free time lamenting his awful luck in love. The show lost its appeal right there and then, it became a pure drag to finish each episode, and I kept ff those boring flashbacks of each main leads and SML.

Who do they wanna fool by having the FL hide from ML and SML in the very town ML governs, bordering the SML’s kingdom, in her own hometown which everyone, even the villains know, walking around freely only donning a sheer veil that is so see-through she should've just ditched it already? 😑 at least in the novel she hid in a secluded rural village so far away that it took ML 1 year to find.

I don't know why cdrama is obsessed with having lengthy episodes. When i read the novel, it only had 24 chapters so i thought even if the production had expanded on side plots it wouldnt have exceeded 25-30 episode. But danggg it turned out to be 32 episodes, complete with so many unnecessary side stories and draggy plots. Even with the expanded plot they did, it shouldve concluded within 25 episodes. All those hours wasted, gosh. The whole expansion on Princess Zigu’s character was one of the draggiest and totally unnecessary, the fast forward button really had to work hard for me. That little side plot with Wei guy from Laowuzi with A’Jia was also too forced and detached, totally unnecessary at all.

And all those torment of ML by FL would've been more satisfying to watch had the ML was the novel Murong Jinghe who kept denying his feelings for FL, emotionally tormenting her while indulging Lou Mei, instead of the lovesick TV Murong Jinghe who had done so much sacrificing for FL until the end. For the tv, it would've been satisfying if the ML had died and left FL heartbroken and forlorn for the remainder of her short life.

However dissatisfied I am with the last 10 episodes, I had to admit the show is indeed rather good with amazing cinematography. Definitely didn't look cheap. The ML and FL did a phenomenal job and their chemistry went right off the chart. This is the first show I saw the actor for ML, and his performance was superb even the screenplay made the characters out to be inconsistent and confusing. The most confusing character is definitely the SML, Yue Qin. I don’t even want to elaborate on him, he is a dodgy little fella right from the start, one point going his all to capture FL’s heart, the next so eager to send her off to Qingzhou, then he wants her back again just to send her off again? What the hell? 🥴 Although, the Yue Qin in the novel had only been 15yo, met FL during the hunt, owed her his life and went to be the sweet little brother she doted on that ML somehow grown to be jealous of. 😝 But anyway, the actors truly rocked their characters really well.

The kissing scene is rather good too! Both worked on them really well unlike most wooden lips stuck together like most cdrama i saw. So far only Prisoner of Beauty and Kill Me Love Me manage to pull this off.

Anyway, the song’s tune kinda got stuck in my head so I’ll give an 8 for that.

The ending is kinda appropriate although not quite the happy ending as written in the novel. I wouldnt say it was a sad ending at all. However, i would still prefer the ending in the novel. So those of you who are not satisfied with the tv ending, go read the novel to quench yourself!

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A Review + an Alternative Storyline

A deeply emotional and compelling story that touches the heart, brought to life by a talented, mature cast. The beautiful original soundtrack — both instrumental and lyrical — enhances every scene, supported by well-balanced sound effects that draw you even further into the experience

Storyline plot: big mistake
My only critique concerns a script choice in episode 22 that felt not only unnecessary but also inconsistent with the character’s established personality and arc at that point in the story.


*** MAJOR SPOILER *** DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT WATCHED THE WHOLE DRAMA YET


By ep.22, Murong JingHe and MeiLin are engaged and deeply in love. He has also made a crucial promise never to lie to her again — a commitment that, as a writer, must be respected. His character is portrayed as deeply principled, with strong integrity, as well as being deeply protective and emotionally possessive of MeiLin. This makes the decision in that scene feel completely out of place. It becomes evident that the scene was crafted solely to heighten drama and emotional conflict for the audience — but at the expense of character consistency.

In this episode, Murong JingHe is preparing to confront the crown prince. With no options left, he goes all in — a final, all-or-nothing gamble that could either redeem or destroy him. Naturally, he wants to protect MeiLin and spare her from danger if his plan fails. So, he arranges for her to escape

However, the way the writers chose to execute this scene is overly cruel — far beyond what Murong JingHe would reasonably be willing to do. He stages an elaborate ruse with Yue Qin in which he reveals himself as the Master of Shadow Works, lies about his intentions and feelings, tells her about the poison in a mean way, and pretends he intends to kill her. His goal is to break her heart so thoroughly that she’ll be willing to leave with Yue Qin when he arrives to “rescue” her.

This plot twist forces Murong JingHe into months of repentance before MeiLin finally forgives him — a plotline that feels unnecessarily forced, given everything we’ve come to understand about his character.


Storyline plot: what should have been
Instead of having Murong JingHe secretly plot with Yue Qin behind MeiLin’s back, the writers should have opted for a more honest, emotionally grounded scene — one that aligns with the integrity and maturity of the characters involved. Murong JingHe should have spoken directly to MeiLin, explaining his intentions and the plan. The three of them — Murong JingHe, MeiLin, and Yue Qin — could have come together to discuss a strategy as allies who trust and respect one another.

There was no need to bring up his identity as the Master of Shadow Works again; that secret could have remained buried — a dark burden he continues to carry alone. What he should have revealed is that the poison remains active, that he has spent months seeking an antidote without success, and that MeiLin’s only chance of survival now lies in a rare plant that grows only in Yue Qin’s homeland.

Given her condition, she’s too weak to fight. She needs rest. And should Murong JingHe’s plan fail, he refuses to sentence her to death alongside him. That’s why she must leave with Yue Qin.

Naturally, MeiLin would resist — unwilling to abandon him and wanting to fight by his side. But this is precisely what he cannot allow. In the end, he would be forced to render her unconscious and send her away with Yue Qin to safety. They would hide and recover in a safe spot, waiting for news. If no message arrives within a set number of days, they must leave and never look back.

From there, the writers could take the story in various directions. If they wished to keep the rest of the storyline mostly intact, they could still do so by having MeiLin feel betrayed and resentful for being sent away without a choice. Alternatively, maintaining the idea that she feels indebted towards Yue Qin could preserve parts of the original storyline without resorting to an unnecessary breakup.

Personally, I would remove the entire subplot involving Yue Qin’s Moon Princess tribe. This storyline felt unnecessary and could be omitted entirely. In episode 23, I would have MeiLin stay at Murong's bedside as he recovers, then be offered by the emperor some honorable status for her outstanding contribution, as well as granting her a proper wedding to Murong JingHe. The storyline could then resume by having them dispatched to restore Qingzhou, as per their personal request, which later lets him fulfill his promise of helping her open a fruit cake shop. This still leaves ample space for the war subplot involving General Ming Ju of Xiyan, as well as the resolution of MeiLin’s poisoning. The storyline in which she fakes her death would need to be rewritten from a different angle, given that the original triggers would no longer apply. However, I'm confident it could be cleverly integrated, especially since the scene where Murong discovers her resting place is such an iconic moment.

That's it!

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Unique plot branching ig

Kitty!! (only in one ep though) Fair warning, they kill a lot of characters, so don't get too attached to them, okay? Okay. There’s a lot they do in the story that’s not quite the same as others of the same genre. There is a toxic relationship, with one side being toxic. It's an interesting dynamic, and they portray it in a unique way. There is a love triangle, but second ml knows his place and doesn't overstep, although sometimes it's hard to tell. The ending might seem like a bad one, but I think it’s bittersweet one. Acting is okay, it doesn't feel completely natural tbh, though it does seem to get better as the show progresses. Music is pretty good. I especially like the lyrics. One and done show for me.

Story: wow, even the side characters can see behind disguises lol. It is a slow romance, as they dont actually get together until like ep 18/19, but I believe it's worth it. There are quite a few role reversals (female takes aphrodesiac, ml is homebody, etc.), which are interesting. They do the trope of the ml pushing fl away, but at least she's smart enough to piece it together. I think the reason why there's a lot of bad rep is bc the dynamics between the characters are one of the most realistic I've seen in a drama and that there are consequences for their decisions, some of which are pretty bold to put in a cdrama. Ngl one of the scenes near the end is really familiar to another drama I watched, though I don't remember which one...lmk if you figure it out. At least the characters know they're wrong. It's just I don't think they needed to do allat to get to this point. Another thing is they say one thing, but then don't keep to their word..like what's the point of saying that when you don't do the thing like you said you would. The wedding is very unique, unlike any other I've seen so far. The ending is also very special and probably the most realistic.

Acting/Cast: top 10 emperors ngl. There's also a female general that actually looks better in armor than regular fem clothes. There's a lot of emotional moments, but I just don't feel that attached to the characters for some reason. Their smiles are everything though,, Rare case where I think the ml cries more than the fl, and I mean the ugly cry kind, which is kinda refreshing ngl.

Music: I love the music and lyrics, especially the ending song.

Rewatch value: Once is enough imo. The story isn’t enough for me to come back to it again.

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changed story

they changed the story to the point that it deviated from the novel. I wish they kept the story line and censored the R rated parts. they kept the essence of the story like her poisoning brother dying, him caring a corpse in town etc but in the novel she didn’t die the crown prince. She was infatuated with murong jinghe until the last moment. in all I want too impressed with this story. very disappointed actually. but all in all it was not too bad. At least the characters were mature and acted like it. No annoying FL. kisses were believable and so was their ❤️

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Good until Ep24 :(

Spoiler review here:

Started off really really well! We had a somewhat psychotic/ playing dumb ML, a desperate for revenge badass FL and an extremely interesting plot setting! The ML was then revealed to be mistakenly wronged- framed for crimes he did not commit. This I felt was revealed wayyy to early (ep 3 or 4). Could have played with this idea until prob ep8.

Lots of fighting scenes to keep you in suspense. The basic plot is nothing new, but conspiracies and maliciousness of the characters are enough to keep you on the edge of your seat. Somewhere in the middle, they get lost in and live in a small village for awhile. Here I felt the inconsistency of the ML character- he suddenly became such a puppy lol and to me didn’t suit his character.

Once the Crown Prince was found to be the ultimate mastermind behind everything, the drama started going downhill. Firstly, his punishment was WAYYY TOO EASY!! Should have at least dedicated one whole episode to torture him and make him pay heavily and publicly for his crimes. Then the whole story shifts to Xiyan, which I found so stupid with the witch doctor shaking her shoulders and hands to summon the gods lol. I understand the writers had to rebuild the town of Qingzhou, so that Murong Jinghe can atone for his guilt, but the Xiyan story was just unnecessary.

The whole romance storyline with The King of Great Yan and Concubine Yan was eeelch!! Disgusting- like grandfather 60s and young girl early 20s which I suppose was the norm in those days. But still… I just had to ff those scenes.

The ending - [SPOILER] is a sad one boooo. Sigh.. probably rightfully so. But I was glad they were there for each other till the end. The chemistry between leads was great, two very intense kiss scenes ;) The character I felt the most tragic was Qingyan- jinghe’s trustee bodyguard!! True and loyal till the end, saved his life numerous times.

They did try to add some humour and light heartedness to the whole drama, but didn’t find it that humorous. Should have just stuck to romance and thriller suspense. Anyhow, a good watch with an unfortunate last third not up to expectations.

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This had so much potential!

This is one of my first reviews ever, but I felt the need to write about this so bad.
The first couple of episodes were incredibly well done and enticing; however, it slowly starts the go down. The story started really interesting and the cinematography was incredible! The shots and the acting what really kept me going for this one. And I really liked that the story did not go in circles and issues were resolved as quickly (sometimes too quickly).
Yet the writing through the end was really upsetting. Resolving the issues that started the story was a great move but stretched far too long. It bored me so much. It was sad to see that such good drama was butchered with the writing at the end.
What really kept me on the show was the acting! It was truly a pleasure to watch the FL and ML (especially him) act so genuinely. Every time ML had blurry eyes, right on point, I had blurry eyes. I liked their acting, I would watch everything with them in it. I cannot praise this enough.
How I hope that one day I will be able to see not annoying acting with not annoying writing!

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A Waste of a Good Concept and a Great Cast of Actors

I had such high expectations for this drama and had hoped that it would be better than Liu Xueyi's previous project, In Blossom. But sadly, it's subjectively much worse. Even though he is paired with a more capable leading lady in this and has better chemistry with her, the writing just isn't up to snuff. The drama crashes and burns pretty much from the get-go. The first few episodes are kinda interesting. A romance between a domineering and borderline psychotic leading man and a badass female lead determined to end him is something I haven't quite seen in a C-drama before. Alas, the drama only plays with the concept but never fully realizes it as if afraid to explore a truly toxic romance.

The story is a jumbled mess. I didn't know how to make of it and I got the feeling the writers didn't know what they wanted it to be either. It's like a patchwork of different subplots that don't seamlessly fit together. The transitions from one story arc to another are badly executed and the writing is filled with overused and melodramatic tropes that I wish would disappear from dramas altogether. The drama also runs a little too long. It should've ended by the 25th episode. But instead, they let it drag on even though there's practically nothing else to tell. I blame the writing for this, they should've gotten better writers to adapt the novel. The cast, in general, did what they could with the material given to them. Although I wish they had chosen other actors to play certain roles, I was satisfied with the cast for the most part. It's a shame because they could've made something far more engaging with this plot. The only thing that made this drama watchable for me is Liu Xueyi's acting that is always on point.

The production is pretty decent. Kudos to the costume and makeup department for the styling of the actors. The music is alright. The soundtrack and musical score don't really stand out to me but serviceable. But that's about it. I don't know what else to say about this drama. I had it to put it on hold after I finished watching the 23rd episode because I completely lost interest. It dragged so heavily by the last few episodes that completing it was agonizing. This is simply not my cup of tea. They wasted a good concept and a great cast of actors.

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It had potential but lost it

Mei lin lost her parents in a fire plotted by one of the royal family.
Jinghe has been wrongly accused of causing the massacre of Qingzhou
Both decided to work together when Meilin found out who the real culprit is.
Honestly, the drama started very well! The back and forth schemes between the crown prince and Jinghe had me on the edge of my seat. Unfortunately, after the big bad wolf was taken down, the drama seemed to have fallen off for me. lol
A lot of the actors played their part well:
Liu Xue Yi became a psycho maniac guy to a loving husband. I've only watched one of his dramas thus far, but this drama definitely showcase the variety of techniques he's able to bring to the drama. His eyes has so much emotion in them, he didn't need to talk. LOL This is what I think is a really good actor who can move their facial muscles even as cold, stoic person. Not many actors can do this, Liu is an exception.

Wu Jin Yan also did quite well. i guess I watched too many of her dramas since Yanxi Palace and this drama just felt similar. Her acting is neither terrible nor pheneomal here. It didn't have much of a wow factor for me. I think her action scenes were beautiful though, I loved every action stunt she displayed.

One of the outstanding actors I would say in this dramas has to be Baron Chen who played Xuanliu, the crown prince.
Maybe I am biased as I've been a fan of his acting since Fated to Love You (classic) and damn... I must say he did a PHENOMENAL job as the villain. The variety of emotions he has displayed from innocence, anger, love, etc. His acting had me pausing during the climax of the drama because it was thrilling and NERVE-RACKING to see who would win. For once, I am satisfied with a villain's death.

The king and Princess Yan's relationship was cute - albeit I can't help but think in the back of my mind how wrong it is. I had to constantly remind myself ancient China had concubines as young as her.. and it was fine back then. Regardless, I did like the King in this drama because he seems to have emotion that no other kings would displayhe was quite gentle and caring.

Once again, this drama started off quite strong, it had purpose and when that purpose was done -there was about ...6 episodes left and I just skipped most of the scenes. I thought the drama should've ended at episode 26 instead of 32. However, I suppose the leads had to wrap up loose ends with Qingzhou, and their relationship.
Would I recommend it?
If you like action scenes, thrill, schemes, sure. But if you don't want to waste your time, I'd suggest stopping at episode 26 or so. LOL

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