Promising plot with unique storyline and horrible writing. An OK rom-com, thanks to Wang Hedi
The series nudged on the topic of social roles in ancient and imperial China, with high focus on the oppression and discrimination against women: this is my first time learning about the burial rites in ancient China where (childless) concubines and palace maids were buried alive with the deceased emperor. Aside from Wang Hedi, the unexplored and rarely told story about this funeral custom made me pick up the drama despite the mixed reviews it garnered.The storyline also explored themes of death, revenge, and domestic abuse, although the narrative did not heavily focus on those.
Comedic bits were inserted in between scenes, which actually worked, and they were neither awkward nor forced. The comedy made the overall tone lighter and digress from the heavier and darker aspect of these subjects.
The first episodes were slower in setting the pace, but this improved in the succeeding episodes. However, a struggle in consistency is notable as the story progresses.
What initially gripped me made me want to skip a few minutes of some episodes because it fails to anchor on the message and theme of the story.
The story lacked depth and the usual revenge and star-crossed lovers tropes did not even allow me to develop a deep emotional investment for the leads and other characters.
It is important to note that a number of scenes, especially the steamy ones, were omitted due to censorships, but upon checking, the said deleted scenes do not hold much significance to the development of the story, unless (steamy) kissing scenes are a prerequisite to your good romance.
For the romance aspect, Wang Hedi delivered. He makes a successful tsundere who’s down bad for the female lead.
This is my second Wang Hedi drama coming from Love Between Fairy and Devil (LBFD) and based from the two series of Wang Hedi I’ve watched so far, I can see that he has the ability to build chemistry with his co-lead. Yes, his handsome face is enough to give you butterflies in the stomach, but he also makes use of facial expressions in conveying emotions that are very effective.
In contrast, I feel Chen Yuqi (as Bu Yinlou) fell short in acting. She was average in some scenes, but overall, I cannot identify the emotions she wanted to convey—by making her eyes appear larger and doing these rapid eye movements, what does she want me to feel exactly? Grief? Joy? Or is there an incoming gag that I need to anticipate so I could break into laughter?
Bu Yinlou is actually a rare female character type who’s clumsy and funny but has a thinking head on her shoulder. Often times, Bu Yinlou is independent and does not need saving when stuck in a dire situation. It's a shame this character was not portrayed better, effectively, and consistently.
The secondary characters have their own story, too, but the narrative did not dwell on these and clearly, the focus of the story was to resolve the conflicts of the main characters.
From a technical standpoint, the writing is definitely askew and the inconsistency is jarring. The plot holes (life of concubines in the inner court, Deer's Reed Residence tunnel, to name a few), though, would not require much effort to ignore.
Wang Hedi’s fight scenes have good choreography and again, to underline his acting skills, he was able to depict the strength and tenacity of his character during these scenes. Some scenes had stunts which were unnecessary (I remember Wang Hedi was just trying to climb into the bed, but he had to flip awkwardly in the air like an acrobat just to do that).
It’s a shame for a drama with unexplored topics like ancient burial customs to make a sharp turn downwards due to horrible writing, but for those looking for an instant fluff, especially Wang Hedi fans who want to admire his good acting (and face), this could pass as an enjoyable watch.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
despite cuts, worth watching
I enjoyed this show and the warmth between the leads. It’s disappointing that the director’s original vision had to go through so many rounds of cuts to satisfy those enough to give it a release. Obviously, to those in the West it is frustrating when things like an important kiss scene is cut, among other scenes, that help show the growth within their closeness within the story. I watched as many cut scenes as I could find online to help fill in gaps,which helps. The scene in the boat is obviously one of the most glaring cuts. Despite this, I still rated it highly. The actors did an amazing job… and it isn’t their fault scenes were cut to pass censorship rules. I enjoyed the characters and the story and even with the cuts, I was engaged in the main couples story. The actor who portrayed thr Emperor was so good at making me hate him. Wang Hedi is always amazing at portraying his characters.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
How crazy are you willing to do for 'love'?
Finally finished watch this after delay it for quite sometimes. Thinking & thinking to watch or not because of Chen Yu Qi. For me this girl is no FL material yet. I love her character in ashes, but as long as she play the lead role / FL, almost feel lack of something. Sorry for her fans. But at the same time I want to watch Dylan Wang after Love Between Fairy and Devil, so yeah finally I decided to watch this & hang till the end because of Dylan & Peter Ho.How crazy are you willing to do for 'love'? Here we have Murong Gao Gong (GG) that willing to do anything just to make sure Bu Yin Lou (YL) be his, even with the lack of cooperative & willingness from YL herself. GG is an unfavored princes that have opportunities to take the throne, due to all his relative is dead & he is as the closest heir. GG himself has very week personality & when he takes the throne he became quite insecure. Unfortunately he choose the wrong way & pick power to control everyone that don't obey him.
At the same time we have Xiao Duo (XD), head eunuch & have all the power to control the military & court. He has one purpose to find his brother killer & take revenge. With time he encounter YL & fall in love with her. In the end they found out the one killed XD's brother is related to YL & he decided to just give up the revenge in the name of love. And last he finally give every thing that he has just to be with YL....
OK. Now our girl, Bu Yin Lou (YL). She is one free spirited girl that love freedom, she is smart & witty. She is falling in love with XD, the man that up & down try to do everything for her & give his best to give her freedom. Unfortunately we got Chen Yu Qi as YL, she can't portray YL perfectly. Although I quite like her in the end, where she like crazy & the talk with GG is done well. But maybe if someone else be YL, it's gonna be better...
What I love:
+ The chemistry between Dylan Wang & Chen Yu Qi not as bad as I imagine. Quite like to see them together.
+ Peter Ho give amazing performance as GG. We can see how insecure he is, how he crave love from YL, and every little feeling that GG has we can feel it.
+ The adorable Tong Yun & Cao Chun Ang
Overall this drama pulled by Dylan Wang & Peter Ho performance.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Good story but very unfortunate finally untidy
The beginning has shown the cheerful, intelligent and independent FL (Bu yinlo) character. The romantic story of the duo Xiao and Buyinlo is also described as sweet, funny, adorable, most of the audience will like it. The main theme of this story is not a conflict of political feud to seize power in the kingdom, but focuses on the struggle of love between 卡西姆皇家 and the widow of the previous Emperor, there really is a rebellion scene to replace the Emperor but many scenes tell love stories and challenges from FL and ML. Acting from Yukee Chen is very successful in being a BuYinlo character, she is very good to play a cheerful, independent, and very good character being a strong female character, Maybe in my opinion, this is the most successful character played by Yukee Chen among the other series that she is the main role. Charisma Dylan is undoubtedly to attract the audience from this series. Lifting thumbs up for Peter Ho, he is very good to play the character of the emperor who is psychopathic, selfish, cruel but even though he is basically timid, he is very good to make the audience upset and angry with him. But unfortunately this series many scenes are cut, especially kissing scenes, this makes the audience disappointed. Overall this series has described an interesting and good story but at the end of this story it is less epic and does not illustrate the end of the romantic story that ends but still leaves a question mark for the audienceWas this review helpful to you?
Started for Dylan, Stayed for the plot and Dylan
Frankly speaking I only started this series because of the ml . I’m a big fan and decided to explore his other series after watching the love between fairy and demon.This is my first time watching a historical drama that isn’t centered around cultivation and so I didn’t really have any interest . I read the comments here on mdl and was discouraged further but decided to continue and I’m glad I did .
The fl’s character was refreshing to watch . She was always quick on her feet and wasn’t easily bullied which I genuinely loved . I also love how the love story between her and Dylan developed. It wasn’t rushed or forced .
Honestly the drama did get boring at some point for like 5-10 episodes but after those episodes, the drama picked up and I binge watched it to the end . The boring episodes were like from 8-15 . I’m not certain of the exact episodes but it’s around there .
I don’t want to get into the details and end up dropping spoilers but all I’ll say is ignore the negative comments and just watch the series for yourself. Try to hang in there till like episode 16/17 and you’ll be fine .
The rewatch value is low simply because I’m not really the type to rewatch dramas. So you can ignore that .
Have a great watch ! ❤️
Was this review helpful to you?
Don't have high expectations
This was what I've told myself several times when I watched this drama. Now, I know my limit, that is don't watch forbidden love type of story because I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop the entire time. I actually stopped watching after 29th ep and proceeded to read the remainders episodes' spoilers so I kind of finish it but not really. I definitely will try to watch this drama till the end.ML, Xiao Duo was intimidating, ruthless and clever head chief of eunuch in Zhaoding Bureau/Sect. He was definitely good at finding solution for difficult situations.
FL, Bu Yinluo, the Consort Duan, was playful, smart and ruthless when the time needed her to be. I definitely admired her brazen behaviour when she slapped the Empress(the villainess) back and hold her as a hostage. Like I need to see more of that move from Female Lead.
I definitely agree when PeachBlossom's review mentioned how they flaunted their affair with recklessness.
Now let me gush about the ML's outfits. Definitely love love how he looks so royally and the person with authority better than the emperor. I love this one outfit of him, there were gold patterns on his shoulders and on the skirts beneath the see-through first layer of the skirt. Idk why but most of the time, his eyes looks like it was so natural for him to have his eyes lined with black eyeliners. Looks more edgy and dangerous.
I am really rooting for Princess Hede and Prince Liangxu's love. Cao Chung'an and Tongyun too.
I cannot believe that I hv to put this drama on hold bcs I'm afraid to watch it till the end. This review is not finished yet, will come back, conclude it once and for all.
- 29122023
Was this review helpful to you?
Wooden actors with no chemistry
After Dylan Wang ruined Evernight 2 with his bad acting, jumping around and waving a sword without any real martial art, runing an excellent performance by a great actress (Ireine Song) we vowed never to watch him again. However, having run out of series to watch, we gave Unchained Love a chance.After 8 episodes we have given up. There is no chemistry between Dylan Wang and Chen Yu Qi and apart from Zeng Li, the remaining cast can only be considered class C actors and actresses.
How anyone can rate Dylan Wang as a good actor is beyond me. He has no character and does not connect with his lead actress.
Save some time and give this series a miss.
Was this review helpful to you?
This is not a final review/rating
Looks like a low-budget series that was done on the cuff. Notwithstanding, Dylan's performance alone is enough to keep me glued to the screen.(During the reign of Long Hua, Xiao Duo, a powerful eunuch in charge of the imperial court, plans a palace mutiny with Prince Fu to help him ascend to the throne. Bu Yinlou, a tribute lady that was supposed to be hanged as a tribute to the late emperor was saved by Xiao Duo as Prince Fu fancies her. The two of them spend a lot of time with each other and develop feelings for each other, but due to their status, they have to hide their feelings. Xiao Duo goes to Jiangnan to supervise a silk trade with a foreign country, and Yinlou accompanies him to visit his relatives in the south, during which they fall in love and finally reveal their hearts. But the road ahead is full of obstacles, Xiao Duo's true identity, the threat of the King of South Court, and the suppression of the emperor in the palace. The two of them have to sacrifice themselves for the greater good and decide to enter the palace, but Xiao Duo misunderstands her. What is the fate between the two?)
Was this review helpful to you?
BIG DISAPPOINTMENT but the acting and cast are excellent.
There is no plot. Why is the ML out for revenge (which is told in the first episode)? We don't know. I watched 11 episodes and BARELY ANYTHING seems to have happened. They're just jumping from one place to another with a kinda-motive.I watched the first few episodes with !..25x speed by accident and only barely kept watching. I kept thinking that SOMETHING would happen. It's such a shame. If there was plot this would have been epic. Especially because it's got Dylan Wang which is a great actor and the other cast members seem to do well, too, there's just no way they could show the emotional range in this drama.
I would recommend this to people who just want a slow romance and doesn't care about plot.
Was this review helpful to you?
Better than I expected but still not great
This series is very divisive: people love it or hate it/couldn't even get through it. After watching it I can see exactly why. If it was entirely bad or mid, that's one thing, but there is so much potential and there are genuinely good aspects that kept me hanging on. Each time I wanted to drop it for one of the negatives, there was still enough positives that I was intrigued enough to watch a little more, then a little more.Negatives:
-Cut scenes not only took out some of the kissy-face stuff we craved but it also made the story hard to follow at times or just made moments we were really looking forward to fall flat (like a key scene we've been waiting for so long to see got cut and only part of it is shown via a freaking FLASHBACK). The ending sucked, thank goodness they gave us the extra episode (that was actually filmed and not just a voiceover reusing old scenes!)
-Tonal shifts felt like whiplash. They may have been able to spin it as a dark comedy but the comedic parts were too slapstick and the dark parts were really too brutal.
-Yukee Chen's acting was better than I expected but still needs work. You can read other reviews, I won't dogpile on her.
Positives:
-The story was actually quite intriguing; not just the premise but enough of the story through the whole series has just enough interesting aspects that as I said above, kept me curious and wanting to see it through, despite the negatives. I wish someday we could see the whole thing uncut.
-The FL is not stupid and the couple trust each other. Obviously the plot needed there to be a few times where ML rushes to her aid but that's mainly early on when he doesn't realize she's capable of handling herself. As things go on they trust each other; there's even one time when she's captured as a trap for him but he doesn't go rescue her, assuring his aide that she can figure out the situation herself. There's other times when he had to act out but she trusted him to not hurt her. Other than one instance of noble idiocy, they're mostly pretty understanding of each other.
-Dylan's acting was good, he could do both the cold smoulder as well as convincingly play a man who isn't actually cold at heart but is tired of putting on the facade. Some people didn't like that he fell for the girl early but I think it made sense in this way. Usually the cold ML is truly cold but melts for just the ML, who then changes him; in this, he's never actually cold at heart but has had to pretend for so long that he's tired of it and found refuge in being able to lower his guard with her.
-Yukee Chen's acting was better than expected. She was funny and devious but in some serious moments she actually was quite chilling.
-Peter Ho's acting was very convincing, a bit too convincing in fact, it was honestly frightening
I rated the rewatch a bit higher because I think after watching, you can then know where to skip to watch the good parts. You can also find most of the cut scenes on YouTube to fill in gaps.
Was this review helpful to you?
Sorry but this drama is a flop for me - It did not lure or make me engage into the story.
Unchained Love - I watched 3 episodes already and can't see myself continuing with this drama. Too boring, and I am not a big fan of Dylan Wang or Yukee Chen.I watched Dylan Wang and Yukee Chen separately in their other dramas, and in my opinion, their acting abilities are mediocre. Perhaps it is too early to tell, but their onscreen chemistry was not great. I liked Dylan Wang in Meteor Garden with Shen Yue, but anything after that drama was not good.
Yukee Chen is being typed cast for the same type of role.
I tried, but the ensemble's plot and acting did not engage me. I understand that many people like drama, and I am the exception. I am giving it a 4.0 rating.
Was this review helpful to you?
This review may contain spoilers
Started off well until it stopped making sense
The production quality is great and the acting is above average so far. The pacing of the story is going well and is actually quite interesting. So why am I dropping this so early on? Because the entirety the plot is meant to be around the FL and ML - and the character of the FL is making less and less sense.The FL was quite charming initially but they built up the relationship between the two far too quickly and she gets away with too much. It stopped making sense when she suddenly starts acting incredibly arrogant in front of the princess when she only just met her. Then she feels comfortable throwing tantrums in front of the ML despite his "reputation" and not knowing anything about him. The Queen kills a maid for touching her candle yet the FL has no repercussions for setting her dress on fire? And she sneaks out of the mourning hall just like that without anyone trying to stop her? Despite her not wanting to die but yet acting with such shameless fervor and not actually even being intelligent about it... just killed her character for me. When the little prince dies, she has no empathetic reaction to it despite having met him. Then approaches the ML and just quite simply asks him if he's the culprit? They severely emphasized how easily people are killed for nothing but the FL just happens to get away with this narcissism? Having experienced being a concubine previously, one would think that she would know to at least pretend to be humble.
It's a shame because it has nothing to do with the actors but rather the character they are trying to paint. If they wanted it to be humorously believable, then they should have just gone that route fully instead of the very somber setting for the first impression.
Was this review helpful to you?
