Takes Time To Warm Up
I think many people can’t resist watching My Sassy Princess (祝卿好) because of Zheng Ye Cheng. He has the required look to portray the role of a general in historical dramas. Of course, looks alone are certainly not enough to promote a drama and make it shoot up the charts. The plot has to be good too to get a high rating from viewers. So, how is the story with this one? Is it worth watching or merely hyped up because of the leads? I have gone through the whole 22 episodes and below is My Sassy Princess review for those who are interested to give this a go.If the first impression counts, My Sassy Princess will probably be unappealing to many viewers. This is because the female protagonist is not an instantly likable character. In the first few episodes, she comes on as irresponsible, immature, and impudent. Therefore, don’t expect a demure and gentle princess but one who is rebellious and intends to get her way with the man she likes.
If you find her to be a real turn-off, in the beginning, it might seem hard to sit through enough episodes for you to slowly warm up to her. You will also have to tolerate her way of seducing the guy which is blatant and direct. It is very different from the typical relationship development in romance dramas whereby the leads are coy about their feelings for each other and they don’t confess until midway through the story. But Liu Ling in My Sassy Princess is already in love with her man at first sight and chasing after him from the very first episode.
I find the change refreshing despite her not-so-likable character. At least, I see a different romance pattern than usual. If you don’t mind an upfront princess who couldn’t care about modesty and conventions, then you might like Liu Ling better. But if you prefer the more traditional guy chases girl scenario, then she will appear as coming on too strongly.
Don’t Take It Too Seriously
Although My Sassy Princess doesn’t have a strong rom-com flavor like Decreed By Fate, it is also not a drama that can be taken too seriously. The plot is simple with only 22 episodes to fit in a romance and investigation into a robbery. If you want detailed political maneuverings and palace intrigues in the mold of Sword Snow Stride or Stand By Me, this is not the drama to binge on.
The focus is more on the romance and with the female lead clearly after the male lead, you will get a flirty feel in their interactions, especially at the beginning of the drama. Don’t be too critical of the princess’ antics and you will be able to enjoy their relationship development. But if you view things seriously, her behavior will become questionable and the romantic vibes will become subdued as a result.
The plot itself is predictable and there is no big mystery as to who are the villains. The cliches are there and you can already foresee them happening in certain scenes such as the couple falling off a cliff and surviving as well as the female lead being forced to marry someone else because of a decree. Thus, the plot is pretty average overall and it is hardly a selling point on its own. What enhances the storytelling and makes the drama more watch-worthy is none other than the chemistry between the leads.
Great Chemistry
I think the chemistry between Yuan Bing Yan and Zheng Ye Cheng practically saves My Sassy Princess from mediocrity. The flirtations would only look romantic if viewers can feel that the leads are into each other which they managed to do convincingly throughout the drama. So, once they got together, the love is obvious and you will be able to feel their sorrows when they face difficulties.
There are quite a few kisses between them and the blazing chemistry means these would be the highlights of the drama. Unfortunately, some have been deleted while others could have been cut short. The unevenness in the scene transitions shows with these poor edits. Perhaps the kisses are too numerous or raunchy for their domestic audience but it is a real pity to have been deleted given their great chemistry.
In addition, Zheng Ye Cheng’s charisma as a cold-faced commander also helped to attract viewers. He seems to have perfected this kind of role with his domineering screen presence and aura. He also played a similar character in The Sleepless Princess which is why Shen Yan shouldn’t be a challenge for him to portray. This is my second time watching Yuan Bing Yan after Love And Redemption. She brought out the essence of the character in My Sassy Princess and I think she did well with what she was given.
My Verdict – Watch For The Chemistry
My Sassy Princess will not satisfy those who want a great plot of a palace power struggle. It will also be disappointing for those who prefer a more traditional boy chases girl romance. On top of that, not everyone will have the patience to tolerate the “sassiness” of the female lead. You need to watch about 6 episodes to find out more about her background to slowly understand her character and behavior. Therefore, I’m not sure if more critical viewers will find this worth sitting through unless they are hooked on the leads’ chemistry right from the start given that the first impression of the drama may not be too flattering.
However, once you get over the initial bump, it gets better as the drama progresses. By then, you should find the female protagonist more acceptable. The leads’ good chemistry certainly helped me to hang on and I believe it contributed much to its marketability. The fighting scenes and Zheng Ye Cheng’s ability to execute those martial art moves beautifully provided another reason for me to stay on longer.
Chemistry And Kisses Sell
I believe this drama is getting a lot of attention in China at the time of this review. I think the leads did a good job overall and they deserve the good results notwithstanding the very ordinary plot. All I can say is romance dramas are very dependent on chemistry to make it work. Kisses sell as well but they have to be well-executed with the couple’s sizzling chemistry being the prerequisite for the scenes to feel romantic to the viewers.
So, the hype surrounding this drama centers mainly on the couple rather than the story to me. Consequently, for this My Sassy Princess review, I would give it a score of 7.5/10 because the plot doesn’t justify a higher rating in my opinion. But it doesn’t mean it is not enjoyable especially if you are a big fan of Zheng Ye Cheng and Yuan Bing Yan.
In conclusion, the romance flavor is strong in this couple. I think the story execution also effectively satisfies every girl’s fantasy of a handsome and domineering lord being conquered by a sassy princess which is typical of historical romance novels. Perhaps this is why it is one of the top dramas of the year to date.
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To love is the most important thing
I absolutely agree with Liu Ling that loving your married one with all your heart is the most important thing to marry but also I liked her romantic time spent with Shen Yan and liked actually that it made me laugh when she ended up in prison because Shen Yan did not pay for bracelet but she did not even ask him did he brought any money and she just run off with this bracelet😂 and what also made me laugh that she had to marry this prince who is 12 years older than her lol but Shen Yan who is only 1 year older than her is much better fit as he is a main character and he made a scheme to ruin the marriage for that prince of Yigu place for Liu LingWas this review helpful to you?
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Let’s begin with the story line, it wasn’t the best and I’ve honestly seen better. The first couple of episodes were in like the camp, and all we ever saw was just Liu Ling chasing Shen Yan, and it got so annoying for me to watch. Shen Yan wasn’t giving any reaction and the story wasn’t getting anywhere. All of a sudden Shen Yan just falls in love with Liu Ling, made no sense at all. It just felt like Shen Yan took that chance as in like oh, I can’t stay single my entire life and I have this princess dangling all over me, I’ll just take this chance and make her my wife since she loves me so much.I don’t know what up with the costumes, like I’ve seen Shen Yan wear the same outfits over and over like he really only has 3 outfits in the entire show, and what’s up with Ling Bi’s outfit. I understand she’s a maid, but she’s a maid of a princess, so Ling Bi’s costume needs look more like she serves the princess.
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My sassy princess
This series reminds me of Love of tiger and rose. It was very light and fluffy considering it only has 22 episoodes 💔 Fell inlove with Crsytal Yuan here! What a gorgeous lady. Cinematography and costumes were all so perfect espcially Crystal Yuan costumes. I wish to see them again in another series. It will be nice to see them in a xianxia series or modern drama. Give this drama a try you'll guys definitely love it.Ps. I've known Crystal Yuan first from Love and Redemption and wasn't a fan of her at first so I tried to stop on ep 14 but now I think I need to see her again and finish that series ✨
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I'm not really fond of FML chasing ML first, especially if they are clingy and looking desperate for male attention, but after a few episodes of this drama, I'm not as averse to Yuan Bing Yan as the Princess Chang Le as I thought. But what really kept me going is Zheng Ye Cheng as the aloof Commander of the Guards. He first caught my attention in Love O2O as Hao Mei who was in this bromantic relationship with Vin Zhang. But here, Ye Cheng is a totally different person, much older and with better acting. As Shen Yen, he endures the silly antics of the stalker-y Princess, sometimes even to the detriment of his missions. The Princess thinks that she has charmed her way in Shen Yen's heart as he was as firm in his rejection. Portrayed as a pampered brat, especially over-indulged by her doting Grandfather, Chang Le is most likely a misunderstood woman who had to deal with political machinations (even from her own father) since her mother's death. Of course, we know eventually that Shen Yan will cave in and profess his undying love for the Princess but before they can live happily after, the couple has to go through the usual trial and tribulation set forth by their conniving relatives and friends and relatives of said conniving relatives.
The drama would not be complete without secondary and tertiary couples, between ML's brother and FL's bestie, and also between their two servants. Contrived couple-dom for the win. This drama is lighter than your usual historical drama, just by counting by the number of times that the FML strategically falls into the ML's arms, and eye-rolls at said "accidental" tripping.
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The FLs enticing & shameless pursuit to marry the ML + Merxat's enchanting charms killed me!
To know a man you must observe his attitude towards the world - Liu LingI'm out of words for this drama, not because I have too much of them but because I've got little to none of it...
Looking back to the whole story, I feel like the main theme this drama focuses on is Liu Ling's pursuit to pester and entice Shen Yan to like and marry her, and the following events just simply follows this sequence. So, I'm not really sure where to start with this review since all I think about is them and the other plot seemed shallow and almost non-existent to me. Well, I guess that's a good thing?
Anyways, lemme just summarize the elements I like and dislike about this drama.
Plot & Twists - The major plot they've been trying to work and brew on since the very beginning ended disappointingly. It feels like they just want to get over with it so they nonchalantly settled with the most obscure way to dismiss and have it concluded. While the other minor events straightout felt insignificant and unremarkable at all to be even remembered and mentioned.
Camera Works - It's like the best thing this dramas has to offer. I can still can't get enough of the alley way fight scene and how it was meticulously executed. Every angle was captured accordingly with proper timing and consistency. Although, they kinda did a terrible job during Shen Yan & Lu Mingshan's final clash, I'd say that overall I'm still satisfied.
Main Leads Chemistry - I've got a rough start with their compatibilty to be honest. For some reason, I cringe whenever the FLs trying to seduce the ML and it's not helping that they got a handful of preposterous scenes in the early parts of the story— the falling from the cliff scene, the bridge scene and a lot more came pouring like raindrops that made it hard for me to bear and digest them at first. But after 'a while' I just learned to gradually accept and love them. It was hard earned I'd say.
Deep diving with our Main Leads... I just wanna say how I cringe yet still love Liu Ling's character as a whole. She's childish, immature and shameless but something about her bold and unrestrained attitude dismisses all her negative traits and captured my attention completely. She was a bizarre subject for me. Shen Yan on the other hand is like the typical cold and stoic guy with a twist!! His smooth yet erotic advances sends provocative thoughts in my head! He's addicting!!
Lead Couples - I expected quite a bit when it comes to Shen Yu & Shi Jin's story. I know they can give us more but they chose to just provide the bare minimum. All the teasing and bickerings only leads to a single kiss and that's it /sighs/. While Luo Fan & Ling Bi is the cutest to me. For some reason I'm satisfied with whatever they've got and I'm just happy that they finally got them together.
Lastly, I just wanna mention how much I love the relationship between Liu Ling and her Grandfather. That's pure love and adoration right there! Also, the Shen Brother's bond never failed to make me smile too. They're the coolest!
P.S. Ending it with another remarkable line... I don't want you to betray your heart to satisfy my feelings and change yourself - Shen Yan
Story - 8.0, They could've work on it a little bit by making the Major plot work but they just didn't. They focused so much on the Main lead's love story that the other stuff didn't stoodout even a bit. It felt neglected and shortly, abandoned. Thank god the Love story side worked out pretty well... if not, I may have butchered this section.
Acting/Cast - 10, What a set of flexible and talented actors/actresses. Yuan BingYan alone already added so much color to this production. Not to mention the Crisp and arousing aura Zhang Yechang contributed, Zhang Yue's flawless execution and the ever charming, gorgeous and meticulous spark Merxat showered to this group. He slayed this drama's visual to the very extent! Unworldly.
Music - 10, I love how mellow the songs are and the timing and placement itself helped the scenes stoodout and felt more heartfelt as a whole.
Rewatch Value - 7.5, This is me being considerate and respectful of this production. It wasn't bad and certainly has a good and enjoyable sides to it but I guess I'll never be able to bring myself to watch it again. Afterall, there are plenty of drama's out there who's more worthy.
Overall - 8.5, It's a drama that has a solid love story but kinda lack when it comes to proper usage of other plot factors. It's worthy while it last but will not linger around after that. I still love it nonetheless... the actors and actresses made me to, honestly! They all were a combo times 3!
IF you find my review helpful please let me know.
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Not my cup of tea
Like most C-drama in recent years, disappointing. I feel sorry for the actor & actress. The story is just, I'm so sorry to say this, so crappy. I really tried to watch each episodes, I mean REALLY tried. Ended up fast forward through so many scenes, because it's just draggy, too much filler scenes, unnecessary slow motion and flashbacks, not to mention, how some scenes are just so strange and stupid. Example, the grandpa was poisoned, ML & FL knew who did it, instead of rescuing the grandpa and arrest the perpetrator, they decide to leave grandpa in the perpetrator care, and just give a bow to grandpa, because they're afraid grandpa will not lived long enough until their marriage ceremony. Who would do that?Was this review helpful to you?
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Love story
Few episodes were good rest were okay .it is a love story. A girl who is princess having bad reputation since childhood . She had been called to be rude ,heartless and ill mannered princess who had fallen in love with the high grade soldier .And pursue him ,all the time clinging on him ,annoying him .It was a drama and she was a heroine that's why he let her entertained him but in reality if someone in his place ,I don't know what he will do but surely can't tolerate such a nuisance but it was story so he accepted her love .As it was a historical story so some spices should be there so she was a princess so she can't married to a soldier but she went against emperor decreed but emperor emotionally black mail her if she didn't marry to another clan king then our people's life will be in danger so she accepted the decree and hurt the feeling of soldier and told him that she bored from him that's why she is leaving him . Because of this he was starting avoiding her but again she cling on him then he asked why she was doing this so again she created a wall between them. so this went on in few episodes . Ultimately they had a happy ending .
So it just a sweet ,cute love story . Who like love story can go for it because along with their love story other two couples' love story got a happy ending .
This drama is not for me because along with love story ,I need to see some spices in a story .
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I'm really not a fan of the noble idiocy. This drama ended up doing what every average Chinese Drama ends up doing, making things messy in the 11th hour with very little episode film time to give us anything but a quick end after dragging everything out and put every obstacle in front of the OTP, including the kitchen sink. So unnecessary.
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First, cast aside your logic
I already seen a lot of ppl complaining about the 'brothel' scene like:"How could a princess visit a male brothel?"
Yeah, that's why don't use your logic for the few first episode :)
If you don't use your logic, I found this drama quite entertaining and the depiction of emotion is quiet well.
First of all, SHE HAS A REASON for acting so childish and for visiting the male brothel. She only wants to bring shame to Duke Guangping (her dad) because all of the suffering she's had by her father and stepmother.
Secondly, the visual and the acting, well no need to say lmao. Their chemistry is so great. The crying scene of Shen Yan while he missed Liu Ling is one of the best scene in this drama (in my opinion) because Zheng Ye Cheng is one of the actor who deliver the emotions so well in crying scene.
The OST is also well done, ofc Zhou Shen and Liu Yuning sing very well.
My favorite thing from this drama except the chemistry between the leads is how the story unfolds.
This is one of those light-hearted drama where the leads just fall in love within a few episodes but needs a lot of time confirming the depth of their love and understanding each other.
I enjoy this one :) but probably won't rewatch this in the future. That's all.
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Had potential.. if only the storyline wasn't so terrible
I'm trying (read: struggling) to continue watching this but all I'm thinking about is how Crystal and Zheng Ye Cheng's chemistry is completed wasted on this drama lol. I'm literally so disappointed because the two of them definitely deserve a better script/story than ... whatever this is, because their chemistry is A+.I actually liked the FL lead at first, but then she got super annoying when she devolved into a clingy, lovesick puppy. I have no problems with a straight-forward FL who goes after what she wants (and in fact, this is what made it refreshing when I watched the beginning eps) but FL's whole personality is chasing after the ML and being in love with him. One of the things that also really grated me was the progression of their relationship. There was, what felt like, absolutely no buildup to their relationship, and I don't know if it's because they cut out a lot of scenes (seeing as this is only 22 eps), but their relationship went from 0 to 100 real quick. It's like one day the ML is telling her to bugger off and the next they're in love with each other and spilling their traumatic past to each other. Like... what LOL.
I don't know. Maybe I'm just not the target demographic? I wouldn't completely dismiss this drama if you're looking for a fun, romantic drama to watch (the two leads have a ton of great romantic scenes with each other) but not if you're looking for something with more substance.
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Light fluffy rom-com with outstanding chemistry!
I have seen the actress before (Love and Redemption) but didn't love her character, and maybe her acting pissed me off too. However, she's grown and become much better, and was more endearing and more convincing in this!!The male lead was TO DIE FOR, the little smile he cracks makes my stomach have butterflies!
The kiss scenes and her inappropriate skinship is what kept me going, their romance was so good. And what I loved more was though there were obstacles they didn't drag out for too long and get cliched/tropey.
If you want a light, easy watch, without too much crazy intense drama, this is it. It was exactly what I needed with my brain being so dead and just wanting something that would make my heart race and flutter.
The second leads were ok, but wasn't too invested in this story or the political story - but both didn't overtake too much time or the main romance which I was there for! I did like the little servant girl and the ML's right hand man's little romance, so cute!
I didn't give it higher rating only because I acknowledge that besides the romance, the rest was a bit so so, to the point where I skipped and didn't feel I missed out on much
The OST is so so goooddddd.
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