Love You Seven Times

I couldn’t even love two lifetimes out of seven

Love You Seven Times is a pretty show.

What I like are the costumes. The budget goes hard in this drama and it’s used beautifully with the makeup and the costuming of the characters. Especially in the heavenly realm. Although I do like the mortal outfits and they are less distracting for me to focus on the characters better. Nothing wrong with this at all, honestly I look at all the details in the costumes as the dialogue goes on but that’s more of my problem. It’s all so beautiful and the main leads are also both gorgeous.

My concern has been with Yang Chao Yue as I’ve heard she isn’t the best actress. I think she does a fine job with the comedic relief.. but her character is directed a little weird to me. I can’t get into her as a ground and mature character, and I don’t think she’s supposed to be- it’s just when scenes with emotional delivery and heartbreak will be sort of unbelievable because of this. Since I’ve seen her do outlandish things I’ll have a hard time adjusting to her suddenly being serious. Although with each episode it’s getting increasingly hard to watch her. I feel like she is cast here because she is so pretty. I am going to be transparent and just say that she is sucking the life from this drama for me.

It sucks because Ding Yu Xi is so amazing. He is very good at delivering multiple characters and multiple personalities of each character. I want this to be a hit drama for him and the work everyone put in. What is good is anything with Ding Yu Xi. Something about him just grabs my attention right away. Chu Kong is interesting and I like to see him in the mortal realm. Catered to love Xiang Yun and it’s funny to see how devoted he is. Although I don’t know why he is the way he is or what shaped him.

I’m not a fan of Xiang Yun right now as she is over the top stupid. Then again it’s the first few episodes that she is like this so I hope they are just setting her character up and she’ll develop to realize the gravity of her situation. I think the comedy in this show was a bad idea considering these character live and die nine times and you are supposed to feel and be invested in each live. Maybe in some way it could be done right, but my god it is so jarring here to see someone die and then a girl with a mustache gamble for no reason.

It’s like two separate shows between the scene with just the ML. It’s such a shame for the potential with him and the grandness of the worlds and stories here.

The whole seven trials makes sense. But I don’t get why Xiang Yun wants to sabotage her marriage, if she wants to save her marriage pavilion you would think she’s want things to go smoothly? I don’t know why she didn’t take the amnesia elixer.. I’m just a lost with that. So if I’m initially lost that is very bad, because I’m following them for seven lives and don’t even understand why someone did something and they just brush past it. The FL character is so over the place.. it’s just bad bad awful writing or maybe delivery or maybe both.

I’m slowly beginning to see the problem being the female lead and her acting is actually unbearable to me. She is so pretty and looks like a doll, but I feel she is very privaledged to be in a role like this. Maybe more low budget dramas would suit her better, but in this role it’s a large task to fill and she simply cannot. The actress does not have the skill to fill this character and make her feel real and likeable. I can’t help thinking that others would be better, for example, Sun Zhenni. I wasn’t a fan of Til the End of the Moon for the opposite of Thais drama. Amazing acting but bad script, but her I think Zhenni could be the female lead and do a much better job. She can act sassy and was someone I wanted to see more of from a drama I didn’t even like all too much. What could’ve been would’ve been watchable. Instead I can’t buy into the character of the female lead so I’m at a loss. She is the focus of the show, her love with Chu Kong. It’s just a shame he is so good at acting but she does worse than nothing. As much as the score can swell and the people around her are acting their hearts out I’m not dumb. I know shows that have low budget but the acting is amazing and makes me believe and feel even in a magical world. She wrings this fry of any emotional depth and merit for me. Seven whole lifetimes and different people to be all tied together by the same soul and love, but I feel she is like a low budget actress in this giant role. I’ll continue watching but only for the costumes and Yu Xi.

Long story short is I’m not buying into a love story that can’t even get me to understand why these two love eachother. It’s just a string of fate but why and how are they attached. What proved their devotion. This show is overly ambitious and fails to do the simple things and plays cheap tricks like music or costume without backing it up with a full narrative that is cohesive and makes sense. I can’t get behind trying to be invested in lives that I know they just have to get through in the end. The ultimate goal is what? Maybe I would find out if I watched the rest. I just realized if I’m skipping so much of the drama then I just can skip the whole thing and spend my time somewhere else. I honestly don’t think this show is going anywhere or will change me as a person. I don’t even think I want to watch anymore, I don’t think I’ll miss out.

If you like it then you like it. Just my opinion but I wouldn’t watch it. There are better things to watch.

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boring

I'm really tired of these FLs with inadequate brain cells. For a person who lived for 3000 years, she's as stupid as a rock. Having to lived for so long, how can she's not able to have a bit of wisdom? just a tiny bit would suffice. Why does Chinese writer love these dumb FL? To made it worse, they cast YCY, she's never been good in acting, just pouting most of the time, and open her eyes as big as possible. She does this in this one too. Aiyaa... I feel so bad for Ryan Ding, his performance is good, but an actor can't carry the whole drama by him self. I hope he can get better project in the future, with better script and better partner.

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A Passable Xianxia Cinderella and Prince Charming drama. Good CGI. Great acting from Ding Yu Xi

Love You Seven Times is an adaptation of a popular novel written by Jiu Lu Fei Xiang. I liked that novel back then. So, I had this high expectation when I first saw the trailer of this drama last year. I was a regular Korean drama watchers that time, so I did not know about Ding Yu Xi nor about Yang Chao Yue.
When it finally aired, I decided to watch it. The premise is definitely the same as the novel. 1 god and 1 fairy from The Matchmaking Pavilion have to go the mortal world to experience love trials. But, there are so many differences that I do not expect that I will point out though here I do not want to waste your time to read them. So, I'll just get straight to my review about this drama:
- The Story
Not trying to compare the story between the novel version and the drama version. However, the set up could have been much better if they follow the beginning of the novel version. It is more logical. In the novel, the Male Lead and the Female Lead are punished to go the mortal world because they have created such a great mess in heaven. Here in the drama version, the Male Lead and the Female Lead go to the mortal world just to help the Male Lead restore his power because he lacks in the love aspect and it's a coincidence that he and the female lead are accidentally bound by the red thread. But, it's still okay for me and I still keep watching. The more I watch this, the more I find it quite hard to go the next episode. Not even the secrets of what happened 30,000 years ago to keep me feel intrigued. Thankfully, the character Chu Kong (played by Ding Yu Xi) is what keeps me from the boredom. Though the FIRST half of the story especially the ones set in the heaven realm seems like an ordinary Cinderella and Prince Charming in the Xianxia world. But, I'll keep watching this drama till the end because after all, I like dramas with heaven realm, gods, and goddesses setting.
- The Acting
I find Moonlight because of watching Ding Yu Xi here. He's a great actor. Though many find him not eligible for the god role, but I like his manly and strong screen presence. He's great in crying scenes, especially in episode 12 in which he was crying his eyes out when his lover died. I cried with him. He's so bloody good in crying scenes and the scenes that require more depth. The one who played the role of Yue Lao is good as well. Between the 4 main characters (Chu Kong, Xiang Yun, Xiu Ming, and Hao Xuan), I must say that Ding Yu Xi and the one who plays the role Hao Xuan are the best. As for Yang Chao Yue, because I did not watch her previous dramas, I'll only review her acting here. Her acting is quite in the range of passable and below passable. Not that bad as others point out, but definitely so much room for improvement. I have to admit in her crying scenes, I find her to be not engaging and sometimes I feel like that she's forced to do so. Even the tears seem can not come out. I can know that she's acting, therefore I can not bring myself to cry with her. It's a totally different feeling when Ding Yu Xi cries. Yang Chao Yue's eyes in most of her scenes look bland. But, I have to admit she's good in portraying a good girl character that even her acting is bad, you can not bring yourself to dislike her. It's just I hope in her future projects, she can practice more and more to balance herself with her costar. It's quite unfortunate that when Ding Yu Xi has tried his best to create great chemistry with her, she can't balance it well. Beside the story, her acting is what hinders me to continue watch this.
- The Music
Quite similar with the Love Between Fairy and Devil OST, but not as good.
- The Costume and CGI
Beautiful and so dreamy

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Not a Perfect Drama, but Ding Yuxi Made It Worth the Seven Lifetimes

I started Love You Seven Times at a time when I was already suffering from a serious C-drama burnout. After watching one drama after another, I was no longer sure if I could fully enjoy another xianxia. To be honest, part of the reason I started this was because my iQIYI subscription was about to expire, and this was still sitting on my list.

But the main reason I pressed play?
Ding Yuxi.

And after finishing all 38 episodes, I can confidently say: I came for Ding Yuxi, and yes, he carried the whole thing for me.

The drama started surprisingly light. The first tribulation was cute, silly, and honestly exactly the kind of easy watch I needed during my burnout. Then the story gradually became more emotional. The Song Xiangyun and Lu Changkong arc brought revenge, separation, manipulation, and tragedy. By the time we reached the Linglong Heart cycle, I was already emotionally invested enough to cry over another sacrifice.

And that was probably the biggest surprise for me. Love You Seven Times may not have the most consistently written story, but it kept finding ways to pull me back in. Some arcs worked better than others, and the later mythology-heavy storyline became more complicated and occasionally messy. There were moments when I felt the drama was trying to do too much, and the final stretch could have benefited from clearer explanations and more room to breathe.

Apparently, I wasn't alone in feeling this way.

Many viewers also found the earlier portions slow or uneven, while others felt the story became much more rewarding once the larger picture and past events started coming together.

The rushed and somewhat confusing final stretch was also a common criticism. At the same time, many viewers agreed that the emotional payoff, the different lifetimes, and the central relationship made the journey worth continuing.

But for me, the biggest reason this drama worked was Ding Yuxi.

Hats off to him because he made every side of Chukong believable. He could be boyish, playful, petty, and downright funny without becoming annoying. Then he could switch to serious, commanding, vulnerable, jealous, heartbroken, and devastatingly self-sacrificing—and somehow it all still felt like the same character.

That versatility was what kept me watching.

I have seen dramas where an actor is good at intense scenes but feels stiff in comedy, or charming in light scenes but struggles when the character becomes emotionally heavy. Ding Yuxi handled both ends of the spectrum so naturally that Chukong remained interesting regardless of which version of him we were getting. And judging from the reactions I found after finishing the drama, I am definitely not the only one who felt that his performance was one of the show's biggest strengths.

I also ended up appreciating the central concept more than I expected. Watching two people meet, separate, fall in love, lose each other, and somehow keep finding their way back to one another across different lifetimes gave the drama its emotional identity. Not every lifetime hit equally hard, but that was part of the fun too—you never quite knew whether the next one would make you laugh, frustrate you, or suddenly leave you crying.

And yes, this drama definitely made me cry.

For someone who started this just looking for something light and easy while waiting for an iQIYI subscription to expire, I did not expect to become this invested. The drama had its flaws.

The pacing could be uneven, some parts of the mythology became unnecessarily complicated, and the ending could have been given more time and explanation. But despite all that, I never regretted finishing it.

Because somewhere between the silly beginning, the tragic mortal lives, the Linglong Heart sacrifice, the revelations, and all the chaos of the final storyline, I found myself genuinely wanting to know how their story would end.

And maybe that is the best thing I can say about Love You Seven Times.

It did not completely cure my C-drama burnout.

It is not a perfect xianxia. And I would not pretend that the writing is flawless.

But Ding Yuxi made me stay for all 38 episodes.

So if you're a Ding Yuxi fan, I would absolutely recommend giving this one a try. You get to see him being playful, adorable, arrogant, serious, jealous, emotional, heroic, and heartbreaking—all within one drama.

As for me?
I came for Ding Yuxi.
I stayed because Ding Yuxi carried the whole thing for me.

And somehow, against all odds and despite my C-drama burnout, I finished all seven times. 😂😭

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Love Across Lifetimes <3

This drama was absolutely beautiful! I loved how Xiang Yun and Chu Kong fell in love across several lifetimes. That concept is just so beautiful to me <3 The angst was absolutely gut-wrenching, and the way that they slowly fell in love with each other as the drama progresses is just so :((( The visuals in this drama were absolutely insane, and I loved how dreamy and ethereal everything looked. I also loved the costumes in this drama! Everyone had such gorgeous costumes. The music in this drama is also so incredibly beautiful as well. The acting by Ding Yuxi and Yang Chao Yue was so good, and I could feel every emotion as they experienced their love tribulations across seven lifetimes. Every love tribulation was so beautiful and devastating all at once. This drama definitely had me sobbing a lot, and while the ending was a bit open-ended, I still thought it was absolutely beautiful <3

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Not too bad for a fantasy drama

LIKE

How Chu Kong and Xiang Yun's fates intertwined in their past and the future - how sacrifices beng made and love being found once again

DISLIKE

When at first Hao Xuan was pretty doting towards Chu Kong but changed due to his own ambitions

MUSIC - personal fav

唯爱 Wei Ai - 詹雯婷 Zhan Wen Ting
余味 Yu Wei - 单依纯 Shan Yi Chun
与爱无关 Yu Ai Wu Guan - 徐佳莹 Xu Jia Ying
哀情记 Ai Qing Ji - A Lin
思想者 Si Xiang Zhe - 胡夏 Hu Xia

REWATCH VALUE

Probably re-watch when I have the time

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Beautiful love perseveres life times

starting off, the first reason i was instantly hooked with this drama was because of the amazing sfx in ep 1. They got a little less 'amazing' towards the end nevertheless they were still pretty good. I also loved the side stories alotttt. Prince Xiu Ming, Zi Hui the stone, and the evil brother Jin Lian were my top 3 fav characters after the main couple. The main couples chemistry was TOP NOTCHHHHH.

I also love how everyone had their own stories. Towards the end i was only resenting 1 person. Everyone had their own reasons for everything they did.

The end was confusing yet fulfilling, this is a must watch.

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Love That Endures, Love That Sacrifices, Love That Lets Go

This was such a beautiful and enjoyable journey. I went into this drama expecting a fantasy romance, but it turned out to be so much more. The seven tribulations kept the story interesting because each one brought a different setting, different challenges, and a new side of Chu Kong and Xiang Yun's relationship.

What I loved most was how the drama explored different kinds of love.

Chu Kong and Xiang Yun's story is about a love that endures. Through countless misunderstandings, challenges, and circumstances that constantly test their relationship, their connection continues to grow. Their journey really made me appreciate the idea that genuine love can endure even when life makes it difficult.

But the drama doesn't focus only on romantic love. Zihui and Jin Luo also have a touching story that shows another side of devotion and love. Their relationship brought some very emotional moments for me.

I also found Xiu Ming's character particularly interesting. His feelings and the way he approaches love offer a different perspective—one that made me think about how love isn't always about getting what you want. Sometimes, genuine love can also mean caring deeply for someone and wanting the best for them.

And I can't leave out the sibling bond between Jin Lian and Jin Luo. Their relationship reminded me that love isn't only something shared between couples. The love and protectiveness between family members can be just as powerful.

I really enjoyed Xiang Yun as a character. She's playful, curious, and sometimes hilariously mischievous, but she's also clever, brave, and surprisingly perceptive. Watching her grow throughout the story was one of my favorite parts. Chu Kong's serious personality contrasted so well with hers, giving us plenty of funny moments along the way. 😂

The drama also did a great job balancing romance, comedy, fantasy, mystery, and emotional moments. I definitely shed some tears, but surprisingly, I wouldn't describe it as overwhelmingly heartbreaking. The lighter moments helped balance the emotional ones, so I could enjoy the journey without feeling completely devastated. 😅

Of course, it wasn't perfect. Some parts became a little complicated, and there were moments when the pacing felt slower than I would have liked. Not every tribulation affected me equally either. But overall, the good definitely outweighed the flaws.

What stayed with me most after finishing this drama is its message about love in its many forms. Love can mean enduring, protecting, sacrificing, supporting, and sometimes simply wanting happiness for someone you care about.

In a world that can sometimes feel crazy and hopeless, it's comforting to watch a story that reminds us that genuine love can endure. ❤️

I laughed, cried, got frustrated, and became completely invested in these characters. Most importantly, I finished the drama feeling satisfied, emotional, and inspired.

9.5/10 for me. Definitely a drama worth watching. ❤️

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I loved it. The plot is basically how Chu Kong and Xiang Yun accidentally get bound together by the ancient red thread, and go through seven love tribulations to ensure Chu Kong's victory in defeating Cang Hai. The twist in the 5th lifetime where they both realize the truth of Cang Hai and the Moluo Clan is really satisfying to watch as well. All seven lifetimes were depicted really well, Ding Yuxi and and Yang Chaoyue did fantastic together. Their relationship was very cute, and the chemistry was good as well. The spontaneous ending of the dead partner reappearing again is a classic in the cdrama industry. It normally annoys me to see them just appear with no clear explanation, but for this drama I took it as a happy positive thing and interpreted it as Chu Kong and Xiang Yun finally being able to be together after so long. All in all, I highly recommend this to anyone who hasn't watched it yet. GO WATCH IT NOW (p.s. i think ding yuxi is really fit, idk where the 'not handsome' allegations came from) (p.p.s they also look quite good together, the visuals from the leads serving) (Ignore my rating for music, unless it's really good I just put a two for everything)

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Clever plot line - all is not what it seems…

This drama is well acted with great production values, costumes and a slow burning romance.
The first few lives the couple lead are fairly straightforward and although the FLs character tragically dies in one of the scenarios there are amusing moments and a slow but steady move towards love. Each time they venture into the next tribulation they discover more and more that they like about each other ans they start to uncover the truth which leads to the ML starting to thaw out his once dead heart. The ML and FL start to fall in love and it’s not just about personalities and chemistry, it’s also about trust which adds depth to their story. Their chemistry is so believable and beautiful.
The bad guy isn’t who you’d expect at the outset but before he reveals himself you get hints that turn into red flags and then you can really see the depths of his selfishness and depravity. As with all the actors he is so believable and brilliantly cast.
My only criticism would be the royal guard costumes that seem to have been fitted to giants and then worn by normal sized actors - like they’ve been handed to a younger brother. Small detail but soooo annoying when you consider how amazing all the other costumes are.
Will probably watch again at some point

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