Watch it!
I've been waiting for this drama for a very long time and so far I like everything about it. In many chinese dramas, even small doses of humor can be cringe-worthy, and I laughed heartily at this one. The drama even mocks certain stereotypes in Chinese fantasy dramas in his own way. This year many dramas failed expectations, but I feel that will not be the case with this one.Was this review helpful to you?
Great all around
first things first the casting is spot on dyx and ysx is such a joy to watch previously in moonlight and their reunion here was very much a pleasent bonus. The fast paced plot and humor is really well done not too fast that things are getting glossed over but fast enough that my little adhd brain is not bored. Ding yuxis acting performance as per usual is spot on, he encapsulates the character mu sheng very well. esther as miao miao is also very endearing I love watching her and can feel the character well. The plot itself is very interesting as iam a seasoned villainess manhwa reader so i was very excited for this drama and boy sure did they not disappoint!! Thank you for readinggWas this review helpful to you?
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Super Fun
I ended up really enjoying this show! It balanced romance, comedy, and demon catching well throughout its 32 episodes. While the acting was a bit stiff at times, the actors grew into their roles and eventually became quite endearing to me. The show grabbed me with its innovative plot and hilarious exchanges between the characters, but I grew quite attached to everyone and was very invested in the plot by the end of the show.**SPOILERS**
Shoutout to Ziqi's parents' storyline for being extra heart wrenching. The ending was slightly more open-ended that I expected, but I don't mind it. I wish there was a bit more closure for Mu Yao and Liu Fu Yi in the aftermath, though (at least for the viewers). I loved the layering of different characters in the show with Mu Sheng and Miao Miao and the messaging about needing to fully love and accept yourself to love someone else 100%. It was very sweet.
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An open end ending
Enjoy, the journey every episode is filled with comedy while in the later end some romance can be seen. The relationship between mu sheng and lu yi (miaomiao) is cute but cuicui will be the cutest of all time. Mu yao and fu yi are the mature characters of the show that shows desperation and passion.The story of demon queen was rather sad. And the end is good but the evitable elements could've been diverted as the beginning of the drama was something that was fun.
An amazing drama!!!!hope to see this cast together again.
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A story about turning darkness into light.
Incredible drama! 9.5/10, or maybe even higher (I certainly plan to watch again, and it's the kind of story that gets even better watching it again knowing the context that is revealed at the end)What I loved:
--Fun premise (modern girl gets sucked into the game version of a novel by her favorite author)
--Enemies to lovers romance
--Love, love, and more love! this was just such a joyful story from beginning to end. The main character is a source of light and hope for everyone she meets, and it has an enormous inpact--she literally rewrites a dark, depressing novel about secrecy and animosity into a story full of friendship, adventure, and redemption for literally every character.
--broody hero to make anyone swoon. Seriously, his smolder is 10/10
What maybe could have been better, in my opinion (WARNING: SPOILERS BELOW):
--no real kiss for the main couple. Seriously! They are even engaged and have only hugged and held hands. Even at the very end, when they are reunited in the real world, NO KISS. I can respect this narrative choice on the one hand (it does make sense that Ziqi, being at some level hiding his real identity from Miaomiao, would want to wait to kiss her until she knows who he really is and they have a chance to develop a relationship in the real world), but still, I as the viewer DESERVE A KISS, I deserve that closure. There is a sort-of kiss at the end of the credits...but they are clearly working the angles (not an actual kiss), and it was in no way built into the story.
--I would have liked to see more hints about Ziqi's real identity built into the story from the beginning, and I would have liked Miaomiao herself to figure it out. Her character started out with a lot of agency, but by the end I felt like she was turning into kind of just a stand in for "happy character that the male character has to experience character growth in order to earn". This was pretty disappointing to me. It wasn't really egregious--she still is the reason that the world was saved, everyone is brought back to life, and even that Ziqi makes it to the top of that stairway to heaven in order to confront his true self. In other words, still quite a strong FMC...I would just have liked her to be the one who figured out who Ziqi really was.
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THE BEST C-DRAMA OF 2024
This is the c-drama I have first watched since I stopped watching way back 2020, and I can say that this c-drama didn't dissapoint!! I was a fan of Yu Shuxin so I give it a go and from what I can say this is just AMAZING!! Although I was quite a bit sad about the ending being an open one but still it was a good for us to imagine what will happen next, it like not an ending but a beginning!!. First time watching Ding Yuxi act and I instantly became a fan HAHHAAHAHA. Zhu Xudan and Yang Shi Ze are also excellent actors!! I did cry a lot in this drama so get ready your tissues if you are gonna watch it T^T .IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED IT YET, GO WATCH NOW!!
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Cast: Yu Shuxin played as the cute, bubbly girl which I think she nailed it. I personally preferred her other character in My Journey to you, but she did good. Ding Yuxi is a really good actor, I've seen him in other dramas and I'm happy that he's getting more recognition. He can act and I think this character is probably the character that fits him the most as someone who is somewhat evil but also holds a kind heart.
Costuming/Props/Makeup: The costuming of this drama is really different from other shows I've watched. It's not super ugly but it's a little excessive. There's lots of threads, beads, pompoms, and it's everywhere espeaically with You Shuxin's outfit. Watching it kind of gave me a headache because so much was going on with her hair. The other characters were fine.
OST: The ost's are catchy and good. I love dramas with good ost's, it adds a bit of sadness but also happiness into their songs. The singing for it also was really well done by the main leads.
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IT WAS ACTUALLY GREAT and i typically don't like reborn into book "isekai" dramas
Definitely do not pass this one up! The ending managed to be wholesome, even though everyone wished for more.Story: FL is a mega fan of the author who wrote this fictional book Love game in eastern fantasy. She dreams of it one night and experiences an epic adventure as the main character of the book.
To be honest, i watched the first few episodes and thought it would be really cringe. But i kept going. And i'm so glad i did.
At the end, i was sure they would botch it up. How could they tie up the historical love story with real life ? Basically, you will find out the reason the author wrote the book this way and why FL dreamt of it. As well as why Male lead felt like he never had a mother.
In summary, the soundtrack was great, special effects were high quality, acting was great on all parts, and the story had lots of good themes.
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Attention to detail and effects are top drawer ?
One of the best C-dramas I've seen in ages. Initially drawn in because of Ding Yu Xi, fresh from Melody of Golden Age (another excellent production). It's always great when you can see someone get to demonstrate their range across several dramas and not just play the same character again and again. Once again, he does a fantastic job of portraying the complex character of Mu Sheng. I was delighted to see Zhu Xu Dan (Cute Programmer, Eternal Love) as the 2FL and I thought she was also excellent. Overall, casting was really good right down to supporting roles. I'd not seen FL or 2ML before but both did a good job with their characters and the contrast between the couples worked really well.What made this drama really stand out was the effects. I'm used to watching Chinese historicals where you wish they had decent effects/CGI but you either give up or overlook the poor quality. This is one of the best I've seen, in most of the drama I'd say on par or not far behind Alchemy of Souls - quite spectacular. I also liked the attention to detail and how they carried through the effects associated with certain characters to their costume, hair and make-up. Fight/action sequences were also great. This drama was so good I only watched it on my laptop (decent size screen) because it would have been a waste to watch it on a smaller screen (ie my phone).
Pacing and story - at 32 episodes I thoroughly enjoyed this, we had a good amount of comedy, it didn't drag and things were nicely tied up at the end. There were some great twists which kept my attention and gave some characters the opportunity to play different characters/their characters in a different way. If you haven't watched yet, make sure you watch the last episode through to the end of the credits / if you've watched but missed the credits, go back and watch to the very end!
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I CRIED AND SOBBED
i loved every part of the drama, it was a mix of modern life at the beginning and then made a jump back in time. The story was cute, romantic and had ways to make you laugh. The ML and FL were sort of enemy to lovers which made it more interesting so if you are looking for something to watch but crave romance, friendships and adventures please WATCH IT. Overall i'm really happy i watched this, i would never know what i was missing out on. I do wish they had one more episode at the end where the author and his fan meet to realise and lived happily ever after but nevertheless it's great either way!Was this review helpful to you?
A captivating drama
This drama belongs on a top-tier list, although I know some people will not agree. It has been a long time since a drama has enamored me to the point where the minutes in each episode just flew by. I loved Miaomiao and I loved the interactions between Miaomiao and Ziqi. This type of drama might not be your cup of tea, but if you like it, you will fall in love with it. The three big points are that Miaomiao is too cutesy with a high-pitched voice. I am not going to lie; I am not a big fan of cutesy characters, but I feel like she did it well. (Although you could say I am biased). Maybe your TV was too loud, and that made her voice ring, but it wasn't all that high-pitched. Next, some say Ziqi was too stiff. I don't think so. He was a one-dimensional character till Miaomiao gave him life, which is what happened in the real world. There are parallels that you have to catch. Lastly, some people feel like the plot dragged on, which is something I also feel happens in longer dramas, which is why I don't tend to watch them, but that was not the case in this drama. (Other than the bracelet plot that dragged on too long and wasn't necessary.) However, the side plots with the side characters gave the story depth and made the world seem real, and I fell in love with the side characters and wanted to know their story. I am not saying that the other reviews' opinions are wrong; I think that what they seem to hate is what makes the story better. There are many easter eggs in this drama that make it a great drama to rewatch, which I plan on doing in a couple of weeks. Now, I will say this drama is a 9.5 and not a 10 because of the ending and not because of what you think. Although don't get me wrong I would have loved to see them in the real world my real issue was that it felt a little rushed I think 2 more minutes to either pan to him looking at Miaomiao or to see him reflected in her eyes and see a tear fall would have made the ending better.Was this review helpful to you?
Never laughed this much for a wuxia (in a good way)
When Ling Miao Miao's favorite author, Fu Zhou, publishes a new novel, she eagerly dives into it, but the book "Monster Hunting" ends up being a disappointment with nonsensical plot points, forced dramatic events and an unsatisfying ending. Just as she's writing a negative comment about it, Miao Miao is forcefully pulled inside the story and finds herself in the shoes of the female antagonist, Lin Yu. The mysterious voice of the system then informs her of the mission she must complete: make the male antagonist Mu Shen fall in love with her and make it to the end of the story.As predictable as the premise might be, I had a lot of fun with this plot. The first few episodes show Miao Miao as she's gradually adapting to her new life as Lin Yu and works hard to make sure that nothing bad happens to any of the characters (or herself), which makes a much more hilarious experience than I had anticipated. I would say that roughly the first half of the drama is pure gold, with comedic and sentimental moments that blend well with each other. Unfortunately the second half (starting from the arc in the city) gets gradually worse as Miao Miao seems to lose her main role in favor of Zi Qi. The pace also gets worse, with many parts that feel draggy and with the last 3-4 episodes that feel terribly rushed.
The characters were all amazing and so was their acting. Esther Yu and Ding Yu Xi were the perfect cast for the main roles and their chemistry is undeniable - their bickering moments, their romantic moments, their heartbreaking moments were all so well done! I didn't have to wait long before feeling like Miao Miao, Mu Shen, Mu Yao and Fu Yi (and Cui Cui later on) truly cared about each other. Miao Miao is not the classic damsel in distress and is actually very proactive, despite being the only one in the group without strong powers to face enemies. I was half worried that the characters of the book would end up feeling cartoonish, but that wasn't the case at all, even for the villains. The supportive roles were well written and I appreciated it, although I wish they used some of the screentime for the main characters instead of exploring the lives of so many random people met along the way.
The fact that Miao Miao starts feeling less like the protagonist and more like a support character in the second half of the drama was disappointing for me. It wasn't as bad as it could have been, but I really wish they let her keep her autonomy all the way through, instead of moving her to the side.
The production quality is very good. I admit I haven't watched many Wuxia/Xianxia dramas before, but this one is definitely among the ones with better special effects I've ever watched. All the spells felt more vivid and weren't reduced to constant energy beams all around. The fighting scenes looked great too, with good choreographies that made them all look distinct from one another. I liked the OST for this drama and thought it fit all the scenes quite well, despite there not being any track that truly stood out to me.
If it wasn't for the last couple of episodes, this drama would have easily been a 9 out of 10 for me, if not more. I wish they gave the events of the last two episodes more build-up and more room to breathe, instead of cramping everything in 80 minutes or so. Despite this, I really enjoyed this drama and would recommend it to anyone who likes a good transmigration story.
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