The story of the drama is fully consistent with its name, Love Game
The drama is very beautiful and well-made, and after all the sad and depressing series with dark and sharp colors, this one is really very happy and colorful. I like the makeup depiction of the story of everything😍💯🥹. If you want to relax and watch a drama after work, don't miss the chance and watch it soon. thank you❤️❤️🔥❤️Was this review helpful to you?
It started SO STRONG!!
==Breakdown==Background plot -65% (85% plot at the end, 45% plot at the beginning)
Romance - 20% (0% at the end, 40% at the beginning)
Misc comedy - 15%
Background plot - Meh at the end, great at the beginning
Romantic chemistry - Excellent
Misc comedy -Great
Production value and direction - Good
As the show progressed, it went from a solid 10/10 to a 6/10, so I averaged to 8/10. Around episode 24, it started going downhill. I held out hope and finished it, but each episode after 24 was worse than the one before it. My recommendation is to end at episode 24, sadly. :-\
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Best Cdrama of this genre in 2024 and perhaps last few years
Had to create an MDL account just to praise how amazing this drama is. The unraveling of the entire premise of the drama from episode 1 to 32 really couldn't have been done any better imho. This style of giving side or guest roles to prominent actors makes the viewer feel as if the production company is intentionally and sincerely creating a great drama and not just another run of the mill production. The overall aesthetics, costumes and set designs is mesmerizing and of course the drama is full of pretty and handsome characters. The ML and FL chemistry is off the charts and I could easily watch another ten episodes of only their interactions. Have to make a special mention of Cui Cui the little bamboo demon as the brilliant acting of this little fella made me smile with joy every time he was on screen. Pretty much all of the other cast do an excellent job too. The story telling of this drama is just so well done I had to take pause at several moments to appreciate just how good it was. It's also on netflix so can rewatch in one full sitting with English subtitles.This drama should hopefully sweep the awards of 2024 but had to specifically say for this genre as it's too difficult to choose between this, War of Faith and She and Her Girls.
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This review may contain spoilers
Loved the Philosophical Undertones!
I have not watched period chinese or korean dramas before as period dramas are not my thing; but i am decidedly enjoying this show. There are several things that I loved:i. the characterisation of the ML, who is emotionally damaged and has his inner turmoils to handle and hence comes off as gruff and un-trusting as that is his psychological defence mechanism, not to add that he does face identity crisis over his identity of a half-human and half-demon but his gradual softening is heartwarming
ii. the philosophical undertones; there are a few episodes that i absolutely loved--the one with the water demon for instance when the audience and Miaomiao both come face to face with Mu Sheng's demonic side , or the one when the four leads tackle dowager consort Zhao in her dreams, or the episode when inside Qilian mountain the main leads confront their inner nightmares
iii. the attempt the show increasingly makes of deconstructing the human/demon binary
iv. the CGI--terrific. really adds sheen to the narrative
v. the attire, really attracted to the traditional attires and fabrics
vi. the meta-ness of the narrative, specially from Miaomiao's perspective
The ending of the show felt a bit of a let-down but overall the show was good enough for me not to be underwhelmed completely.
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Lovely Fantasy CDrama 2024
I always see Chinese period drama.Love Game in Eastern Fantasy (2024) is the best for this year. I'm very satisfied.
There are good twist and turns. But will not stress the viewer and interesting and entertaining.
Normally, I could easily get seeing a childish FL. But, strangely, this drama did not make me annoyed seeing such a FL. She was just OK for me. Yes, her acting is good. Nobody in this drama disturbed my happiness/ enjoyment of the drama. BGM is also very good.
The ML, Ding Yu Xi is so handsome and super good acting. He is my favourite actor, now. A few episodes left to finish this drama. I'm looking forward to seeing his upcoming dramas. Hmmmm, this is crazy.
If you haven't watched this drama, I highly recommend this. You won't be disappointed.
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Such a strong start, such a disappointing finish
The concept of being reincarnated into a character in a story is nothing new, but the gamified aspect of the reincarnation interested me enough to start this drama. The first half of the drama delivered on this aspect; the game was constantly referenced either with Mu Sheng's likability rating, the game giving Ling Miao Miao quests from the original novel, or Miao Miao being killed several times while trying to figure out why Mu Yao was reacting to the 'medicine.' It seemed like the game aspect was lost in the second half, besides the way-too-convenient power that Miao Miao gets to save the day at the cost of her memories.There were some things about this drama that I found delightful. I absolutely adored the found family trope of the main cast, especially once Cui Cui joined. I think that all of them travelling together allowed for a great deal of character development for the characters and it was just really enjoyable to watch the characters interact. There were several times where I genuinely laughed at something they did or said, and as disappointing as I found the plot to be, I was genuinely invested in the wellbeing of most of the characters. I also absolutely adored the costuming of this drama; each character had a distinct style and color palette that fit them.
As far as plot goes, the story of 'defeating the big bad (in this case the Resentful Woman, Queen of Demons) in order to save the world' is also a common trope. I believe it can absolutely be done well and in the first half, it seemed right on track to be one of the good ones. The plot moved forward in a way that made sense for the characters and any side plots were resolved fairly quickly so that focus could be brought back to the main point of their travels: finding the Resentful Woman.
However, in the second half, this suffers greatly. Side plots were introduced that didn't feel like they added anything to the main story and took up far too much time (I personally wasn't a fan of the side plot with the phantom demon/Liu Fu Yi/the village nor the one with the Marquis and the bracelet) so that the main focus took a backseat. In the end, this character that had been built up to be a truly horrific and powerful enemy capable of causing the catastrophe of heaven is done away with fairly easily. I liked the idea that the demon was there all along, but the conclusion of that storyline was incredibly disappointing for all the effort that had been put into finding her.
I also found the modern world aspect of the final episode to be a strange choice overall. Miao Miao has only fuzzy memories of what happened in her 'dream' (the game), but Sheng (or rather Fu Zhou) seems to remember everything, since he rewrote the book with a happier ending? Throughout the whole drama, it was Miao Miao making choices and changing the world of the novel, but it was only Fu Zhou that could change the actual ending? It was confusing and we didn't even get to see them reunite in the modern world at the end, nor do we know what happened to the characters in the novel, which left the ending feeling more like a collection of loose ends than a neatly concluded story.
Overall, I'm glad I watched for the first half of the drama, but I could've gone without the last 10-12 episodes.
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Definitely a must watch, enjoyed it more than i expected
I thought this drama will be the usual cliche plot and did not plan on watching it as I had high hope for the other airing drama but my friends continuous persistence won me over and watched it and I enjoyed it more and liked it more than i expected it to be.No boring episode and the ending is a perfect ending for me. I liked it how everything was on point and had no loose plots. Episodes 7,28,29,30,31 and 32 are my fav everything was so well elaborated and Well explained that it had a perfect closure.And iam so happy it had a Happy Ending !
EstherYu definitely slayed this role,I loved her expressions how it made it more funny and also sad at the same time and the fact she played 4 different characters perfectly not making all the characters look the same was literally perfection to me,will definitely be watching more of her dramas.
DYX I have no words for him, everything about him is perfection slayed his role straight out of the manhua/manga or novel itself.
And the second CP as well iam happy they didn't make it look like they are hoarding the screen all the time but their onscreen everytime was worth it and iam happy they got 2kisses❤️and all the side characters and specially cuicui and his yeye were too cute to handle and was happy to see them being happy in the modern world❤️
Overall no boring episodes, everything on point with a perfect closure ending.I will definitely be rewatching this drama.
This drama definitely exceeded my expectations and will be on my Top list of the dramas I have watched since forever.
This might be the best Cdrama of 2024 yet.
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Fresh and Worth Checking out Drama
I was skeptical at first cuz I am a fan of the book & the manga , concern they will change the details but turn out the drama is great, its fun, entertaining but also heart touching . They do change some detail from the book but all the changes are surprisingly acceptable and some details are even better than in the book. MC are doing great job and they fitted the character so well. The chemistry between FL &ML is soooo good. Strongly recommended to check out.Was this review helpful to you?
Same story but great presentation
I am not writing a review. I am shearing my thoughts. When I heared, Ding Yuxi and Yu Shu Xin reunited for a new drama, I was happy. I visited this page so many time to check update. Now finally it is here. It is really very interesting. The main cast and supporting cast doing a great job. Looking forward to see what is going to happen next.Was this review helpful to you?
Overused Trope Isekai, Transmigration Done Right.
I've watched many transmigration and isekai tropes for the past 10 years and I have to say, Love Game in Eastern Fantasy does a phenomenonal job in executing the storyline and main characters. This series reminded me of Chinese Paladin with Hu Ge and Liu Yi Fei of how I fell in love with cdrama series all over again, with their OST, storyline and casting, character, dialogues, action and wardrobe. It's like anticipating if Esther Yu were to transmigrate into Chinese Paladin.....wait she already did. Not that she isekaied but play a role in Chinese Paladin. LMAOThe cast is good but not the greatest. Our two main leads deserves a standing ovation in their roles. They make you believe they are the characters as well as the famous cameo actors and actresses that come along that make you care for the characters. I haven't seen Gillian Chung play a villian since The Twins Effect/King of Blades. She hasn't aged and still beautiful, pretty and gorgeous as always. I haven't seen her character in this series yet, but I'm excited. However, I'm not enjoying the secondary main leads mainly due to their acting who seems like their reading the script rather becoming their character. I do have to give it to Zhu Xudan, who has improved. I watched her in Ten Miles of Peach Blossom and her acting isn't natural and she's quite stiff making it seem like she's playing the same roles or rather herself. But in this role, I see improvements where she's more relaxed and acts like she is her character, Mu Yao, at least sometimes.
The music doesn't stand out. I tried to like the OST, but none of them stood out except, when the characters are fighting in action. I like that music best. You can hear the Qin/Guzheng playing in the background with the beat of drums and remix which sounds like Naruto fighting his enemies.
A lot of series that was adapted from manhua's and novel medias have been disappointing. But here, Conquering the Black Lotus/Guide to Capturing the Black Lotus and Love Game in Eastern Fantasy have been great so far, and no complaints. I'm happy they took inspiration from the manhua where the clothing in the manhua comes to life in Esther Yu and Ding Yuxi. They kept their color green for the female lead and yellow for the male lead. The costume designs doesn't look cheap and lazily made as if they're cosplaying. I never read the novel, so I wouldn't how good it is, but I'm sure the manhua follows the novel. I'm satisfied in what the director and crew has done in this series. They definitely deserve an award for producing such an amazing show. Lastly, their CGI isn't the best but tolerable to watch.
Overall, I'm excited to finish this drama and finally get to enjoy a show worth watching. I just hope the ending isn't disappointing like all the other ones I've come across who had a great storyline like My Journey to You and My Journey to Love with terrible endings. My rating may change if the ending is done right. Fingers cross.
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