A Dream within a Dream

Awesome. I couldn’t resist watching the next episode.

This is one of the drama’s that leaves you speechless. I personally enjoyed it. Now don’t think of me as a liu yuning fan supporting his drama, I am just a drama fan supporting a good drama. I would give this a 10 out of 10, which is a solid score.
The story happens in a weird yet common setting. The female lead is an actress who has to work with a famous actor. The story they are doing is not that great and the female lead feels like this will only work because of the fame her co actor has. As she was studying the script, she gets transmigrated into the story. In the story she is supposed to betray her fiancé and marry the male lead. but the male lead cheats on her with her sister and in the end, she dies a tragic death. So now that the female lead knows this she would naturally try to stay away from this end. This is the hilarious path she takes to stay clear from death.

The pros. The main thing about the drama is its story. It is compelling, serious yet awesomely hilarious. We care and fall for the charcter not just because they are the leads or because they are handsome, we are complled by the plot to do that and thus this attraction is super strong. The script is precise and delivers what they have intended and is well paced. The second thing to talk about is naturally the actors. Weather it is liu yuning or li yitong or any onther character, they were all well casted. The acting was soooo good. We could feel the fresh wounds of nan heng through liu yuning and the confusion within song yi meng through li yitong. Special mention includes zhang zheng yang (the emperor, like I hated the charcter to core), chang long (nan rui, I mean he always brought laughter to the group) zhu xu dan, riley wang and many others. Another ood thing was the props. They were realistic. We can tell that a good amount of the budget went into it. The costumes were also great. Another notable and very much appreciable part of the drama is the music-weather it is the ost sang by the leads or other songs- they were lit. the music director chen xuren is amazing. He manged to bring in new sound effect and in corporate modern music to the scenes.
The cons. Not many but I think the jewellery used by everyone is a bit too much at times. Everything else is well placed and paced but the jewels were a bit too shiny and hua chengy (a tgcf reference, means jingling)

Now please do watch this drama the rewatch worth is also so high. The motions are real; wounds are raw and there is an undeniable attraction we feel towards the leads and the drama. Its beautiful. Its marvellous and funny.

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A Dream from the Zhuang Zi - gentle satire and exhilarating drama as a must watch !

This was another roller coaster of a drama, starting with a bang, laying out the rules of the game, although like in any game, there were some hidden or additional ones that were revealed later. It blended hilariously and thrillingly references to other popular or beloved dramas, that seasoned drama watchers could nod wisely at.

The actors were so well chosen. Li Yitong was made up so much like Bai Lu, another queen of fantasy dramas, that many had to check that it was not the other actress: she was playing a role quite different from her former Hua Rong in "The Legend of Condor Heroes" 2017 version.

The first reference that came to mind was of course "The Romance of Tiger and Rose", with a dash of "Eternal Love 1" drama with Liang Jie. "Iconic scenes" explicitly referenced "One and Only" and "Love Like The Galaxy", etc. It could be almost treasure-hunting to go back and check for more of such references.

All this was woven into a story that had so many twists and turns, even hiccups! It could have been tiring and déjà vu. But the strength of the actors, leads and supporting cast included, and the excellent OST master minded by Chen Xueran, not shy to include Liu Yuning's signature "Offer" song in episode 19, all that kept audience on their toes to figure out what would happen. The prince of OST proved once again that he is a wonderful actor, and for once, despite his dour and dark, even masked appearance slowly thawing into gentle pursuer of the "female lead", got approval from the majority of audience, earning a very decent 7 rating from Douban raters, who usually are not kind with the long legged actor. Even the vloggers who usually rant against LYN (or "idols") found merit enough to rave and even make fan edits for this drama!

Some details also added zest: at one moment, we see a short haired cat and a small long haired dog ; the first one looked like Wang Youshuo's own cat, which he brought to set. Despite Wang Youshuo played a villain here, his taking part still was a major attraction for part of the audience. On the other hand, the small dog was definitely not Liu Yuning's beloved pet Schnauzer Daimi.

The script was so sweet to have a password spoken by Nan Heng in the bonus scene at the very end. The tamed prince had previously learned from his "one dream" (Yimeng) crush to pronounce "White Hand same heart" as a mock English translation from the Chinese 白首同心 (Together for life, where the second character is pronounced like "hand" 手 in Báishǒu tóngxīn). FL Song Yimeng was aware of her shortcomings as a student (her memories of chemistry classes had hilarious cartoon like results, but her chemistry with the "male lead" was still excellent, even if she was a lousy teacher misleading her student into learning mistakes that still could serve in another context). So, about that intriguing end scene: this was perhaps "real life" actress "Song Xiaoyu"'s happy dream to wrap the story for herself in her mind before filming, or perhaps it really was the crown prince crossing over into modern day reality.

After all, the whole drama also referenced repeatedly the "butterfly dream" of Zhuang Zi, a major Chinese parable of the famous classic philosopher. You could see it explicitly flitting around the head of characters, in several episodes, especially those when the "director" dropped in to become an additional "supporting character"!

--Finally, Liu Yuning's expressed his own views about his recent almost back to back aired dramas "The Prisoner of Beauty " and "A Dream Within A Dream" and the place they have in his acting career, in an interview which he granted to Beijing Youth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wi3PHxZF3Ts

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We are the writers of our own fates

This is a fun entering-into-a-script story that effectively combines comedy with the more classic dramatic beats you would expect from a period Chinese drama. The characters are thoughtfully developed, and the story manages to build as it goes along to a very satisfying ending. With a great cast led by Li Yitong and Liu Yuning and a killer OST that will leave you laughing uncontrollably, this is not a drama to miss. Running at 40 episodes, there are some lagging moments here and there, and I wish some of the deeper themes were developed further. However, ultimately this show is about taking one's life and destiny into one's own hands and enjoying life to its fullest, so don't overthink when watching!

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Best drama of 2025,hands down.. don't miss it for anything..watch and make ur own decisions

Done watching
THIS DRAMA was EPIC and WORTH IT
Deserves waaay more than 8.6.....its should get 8.7 minimum and a 10 maximum
The chemistry between the leads is amazing,most side characters are really likable

What I like about it is that it's really different and not predictable, whatever shortcomings it may have are minor and overrode by how good the rest of the drama is.
Best performance from liuyuning he makes feel all the emotions,he honestly deserves a lot of awards for this role
This drama has knocked down my no1 drama and has just become my favorite drama of 2025
Kuddos to the writer,he or she really did something different and amazing.
You are always surprised at every turn of events.Good balance between comedy, serious and angst
Cried xo much in episode 37&38 but it was all worth it in the end.....the ending was just perfect...thanks to the writer and director
Congratulations to the entire cast you all did an amazing job even the villains were top notch
Liuyuning this was your best work to date hands down ...am forever ur fan..I hope you comeback to drama land soon
Liyitong you are amazing,I felt all that you felt in episode 37 & 38

I don't know how to move on from this drama😭😟..I miss them soso much already.
I will be commenting and coming back from time to time until I find something as equally interesting

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS DRAMA...just watch it for ur self, DON'T MISS OUT......don't stop at ep10 ,..make sure u reach episode 16 before making ur decision..... HAPPY WATCHING

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Foresee the ending, change the fate

A dream within a dream (2025)
I cannot believe that this drama has ended. It has been in my “plan to watch” list for a long time now. It unexpectedly started airing but, I was happy since it was another Liu Yuning’s drama after “The prisoner of beauty”. I came to enjoy his acting here too and luckily ended up with an intriguing story as well.
The story is about a “slacker” actress who happened to get a role with a famous actor. However, once she read the script, she realized how “trashy” it is. Unfortunately, the least expected happened and she transmigrated inside of the novel. She tried changing her fate as a Female lead who was treated like a plaything. She soon realized that her fate is unchanged but, something surprising happens towards the end…

The story might not appear as something new or refreshing, but it actually is. The beginning started with comedy and I saw many people dropping it thinking it was just another cliché transmigration drama. However, drama has a unique style. For example, I loved the way they mocked common and overused tropes like male lead does not die or falling off a cliff will not kill you. The side characters being named with alphabet letters is so funny. Unlike many other transmigration dramas, many characters knew that the whole world is a storybook, even if they found out about it towards the end. Especially the female lead explained all the story to the male lead was finally a common sense being used in such type of dramas. Another thing I love about this drama is that, it used a reference to other dramas like Bai Lu’s drama “One and only” and Liu Yuning’s drama “A journey to love”.

Besides its unique concept, the comedy was my favorite too. Although the drama does not heavily focus on comedy, it does not fail to make me laugh whenever there is a comedic scene.
As for romance between the leads, I would say they have a good chemistry. It is just that, we did not get enough of sweet moments after all of the misunderstandings between them were cleared out. Hesitation both from male and female lead was seen during the time they were building their relationship. Male lead was hesitating because his second identity captured female leads heart, not the real Nan Heng whom hated by many. Female lead was hesitating because of the future and the ending they could potentially experience. However, at the end we were finally able to see them facing the future together with trust and an unbreakable bond.

Characters & descriptions

Song Yi Meng or Song Xiao Yu – in my opinion, she was an amazing character. Her character development was good although many people found her to be annoying. However, I think the choices she made later made sense. If I transmigrated into a novel or a script where I have a horrible life, I would do worse than she did. She was slacker first, like she was in modern times but she has changed overtime. At first, she hated Nan Heng out of the fact that he was evil in the original script. Her avoiding Nan Heng was completely reasonable and it was to save her life as well. Next, she knew he was not evil, as he appears to be, however, there were other obstacles, which are iconic scenes. This time she truly changed. It was not out of her own greed or her precious life but because she cared about the other characters around her. Characters development was executed perfectly. She treated them as fictional characters as it should be but after getting to know them, she understood that they all are living people not solely characters made up for a story.

Nan Heng/ Li Shi Liu/ Nan Feng
Nan Heng is the character that suffered the most in this drama but he got justice later on. I saw NH as a closed character. He never wanted to explain himself to anyone even though he was framed or blamed. For this reason he created a persona (Li Shi Lui) where he could be free without anyone hating him. His second identity helped him discover the side of people where they trust him just like how he discovered Song Yi Meng is not as bad as she seems to be. From youth, he simply wanted a close friends and a good parenting figure who trusts him. Unfortunately, he did not have any of that until he built a group of nightwalkers. Towards the end, he finally ended up with his beloved person Song Yi Meng after taking the 99 steps out of 100 as Song Yi Ting said.

Song Yi Ting – I found her characters to be smart. I love one line she said “Humans can’t fall in love with idiots. They are another species.” She has her standards when it comes to love and I like her for that.

Shangguan He or should I say Chu Gui Hongs temporarily brother?
He is the funnies side character and a lovely cupid. He is good at giving advices that involve others love life except his. He just needed a little push.

Chu Gui Hong
Your typical righteous and protective second male lead? Wrong! Pure evil person. Since everyone’s characters differs from the original script so does his. He became so evil towards the end that he did not really have a purpose to get revenge anymore. He was full on fighting for throne and killing the innocent. I thought he would at least start to understand Nang Heng and make up for the old grudges but I was mistaken. I understood his intentions at first as he did not know about the whole thing that happened during the war but later? His actions were irredeemable, he had no excuse to be such an evil person.

Emperor
I thought he would get a proper reason for his bad fathering but I am grateful that he at least got a character arc and became a better father figure in the last episodes.

Nan Rui
His character was indeed unintelligent at first but I believe that he had good traits as person. He knew the difference between the righteous and evil. Lastly, I loved the fact that he was brave enough to save his father, the emperor in the end. Although, he is a character mostly seen as incapable, he did a very good job during the finals

Acting
Acting is of course top tier. Especially the main leads like Liu Yuning and Li Yitong. Liu Yunings acting seems to have improved a lot compared to his previous projects and he killed this drama with his acting range. The emotions? The way he expressed through his eyes is simply amazing, you can literally read them.
It is my first time watching Li Yitong except the time in Love between fairy and devil where she was a guest role. Here I think she played well as cheerful and comedic character but her crying scenes?? They were amazing. Both of the leads had a good chemistry and I can’t see anyone else playing their roles other than them.
Background music
The background music used in this drama are very unique and they even used OST’s from another project of Liu Yuning. The music effects never seemed unnecessary, just perfect!

Ending
It could potentially be the best ending among the transmigration or generally among the dramas I have watched. Like many commenters said this drama includes all types of endings possible. Happy ending, sad ending and open ending but bad ending excluded because I think it ended in the best way possible!!
Overall, this drama brings more refreshing take to transmigrations dramas with a well written story and amazing characters. It is overall 10 out of 10 for me!
I have been waiting for this drama but I am happy and sad at the same time that it ended. Nevertheless, it was a beautiful journey with all of the discussions with MDL people

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FUN!! Funny!!! A good time for the most part! Well written.....????? IDK abt that

This is one of those shows where I only need to hear the first sentence of the premise and I'm in. Transmigration, meta commentary, parody and politics? The first scene with the three way stabbing fan edit with the GIANT text and the iconic song?? I eat this shit UP!!! But in terms of actually delivering on this premise... did it do it successfully?

Um.. sure.

Ultimately this show is successful in its goals, however, the goals themselves are quite simple and don't go as far as I had hoped. From the beginning it's set up that the show would be playing with tropes, making fun of melodramatic dog blood writing, and criticizing genre conventions such as ML must be beautiful, strong and tragic. And what does it end up doing? Using a bunch of typical tropes, is full of melodramatic dog blood writing, and ML is beautiful, strong and tragic.

I truly like Nan Heng as a character, and especially enjoyed seeing him as Li Shiliu, his opportunity to his true self, rather than play the villain prince that he's expected to be by the world. Seeing the contrast between the two selves was great on the writer's part, everything about him and his mannerisms down to the pitch of his voice was different. NH is great because he is complicated, and though he's been misunderstood to be worse than he actually is, he also has been pretty terrible. He's done bad things, manipulates people constantly, lies all the time, and plays a convincing villain because he's actually good at villainous things. Even in his VERY last scene he's still trying to manipulate SYM. The good thing about this couple is that she can read when he's lying/manipulating and calls him out on it. Honestly the other viewers who are just LYN pilled and have misogynistic ML bias are selling him short. He isn't a perfect woobified baby boy victim who has only been done wrong by the entire world. He's better than that. I much prefer the NH who is manipulative, full of schemes that he hides from his loved ones but is genuinely a good person who tries to make up for his wrongdoings.

My issue with NH is that he was sold to me as an opportunity to critique the ML. Instead of actually critiquing him they just... repeat all of the things they say they're critiquing. ML is held accountable by the plot for his bad deeds for sure, punished by SYM's repeated rejections but in terms of his relationship with FL? He just does all the typical bad cdrama ML things, 'plots behind FL's back to protect her' 'plots to sacrifice himself to protect FL' 'Lies to FL so she doesn't worry instead of facing all troubles together as PARTNERS' bs that we've seen 5000000x in cdrama. He fights on his own entirely with no regard for his own safety and though this is pointed out by the characters and SYM, it feels like he doesn't fully understand that this is wrong, and neither does the show want to truly critique these tropes. Luckily, they win in the finale because they worked together, but imo these annoying ass tropes aren't subverted with intention. How is this meta commentary on cdrama when it just... IS a typical c drama? It's why I gave LBFAD/CLJ such a high rating because they had a very real intention to subvert this (even though then they just repeated it in the finale) and LGIEF/YYXH actually succeeded at this. LIKE.... I'm so fucking sick of cdramas turning out this tired old trope because in reality, you are a bad partner if you can't fucking respect or trust your partner enough to communicate and work together!! And you're lame to hate yourself enough to view yourself as disposable.... this is literally one of those moments that proves 'how the hell can you love someone if you don't love yourself.' Because in hating himself and not treating SYM as his teammate, he is literally a bad partner. In fiction it's just tired and overused and annoying bad writing to force unnecessary emotional melodramatic reveals!!! Unfortunately writers are just not big brained enough!! You don't actually understand what a good relationship or partner is!!!! Sorry bout it!!! If I look at this show as a romance then it's really quite poorly done, ML and FL do not have clear reasons for liking each other, their conflict is not explored deeply with enough empathy towards FL, the way they get together is unsatisfying, and then Nan Heng isn't a great partner and that's never seriously discussed in depth, it's just SYM yelling at him and him being like "Okay, honey." Also don't even get me started on how badly his relationship with his dad is written, they don’t even deserve discussion.

Other wasted opportunities include... uhh... just making him cool??? All the fucking time?? Did they not say in the very first episode how shitty it was the cdramas were billed entirely around ML needing to steal every scene, needing to be the savior, the cool guy, the strongest all the time so that the idol's fanbase would be satisfied??? THEN WHY DID THEY DO THAT??? Why criticize cool epic shots of Nan Heng, then literally cram the drama full of them??? For LYN fans?? THE EXACT SAME THING THEY WERE CRITCIZING??? and I understand delivering some because it is an industry standard, but like, isn't there a way to like, show the cool fan edit esq scene, then subvert it immediately with SYM's commentary in some way? Like, let us know that you're still in on the joke. Or the cool scenes are only in cuts to his old script self. IDK I'm just throwing ideas out, I'm not a writer, I'm just saying, there's way to incorporate cool scenes AND maintain that critique at the same time. Instead ML just looks cool as hell and SYM is tossed to the side in terms of love and importance, just like every other cdrama. The other issue was also brought up multiple times IN the drama, which is that MLs must be beautiful, strong and tragic. Oh my god did they torture him... honestly cartoonishly and excessively. It was a degree that far surpassed what was needed for him to take accountability for his actions and went into the narrative just dog piling on him to make audiences love him more. Overly, unreasonably abusing the ML does not make me love him more.... it just makes me lose even more respect for script writers.

Song Yimeng as a character is truly underwritten in every sense. She does not have a shred of complexity, or even love from the writers- something they so seriously criticized in other dramas. She is a blank slate of a self insert character who just reacts and does things the way that anyone might if they transmigrate and face a tragic ending. I will argue that I do think her internal logic is reasonable, unlike most of the criticisms of her character. From her perspective, Nan Heng was a predetermined bad guy, and even if he isn't as bad as she thought, he still lied to her about his identity, KISSED HER under that identity which is technically SA, manipulated her constantly, even if he never physically harmed her, he did not show her respect. That's enough reason to not trust him, especially when you know that bad things will happen if you get together with him. I thought it was reasonable for her to continuously reject him and call him out, I even think it's okay for her to be a little cruel to him. It just would've been better if the writers loved and respected her enough to pay attention to her character and her actions and give us empathy for her. I think the lack of empathy towards her from viewers is half misogyny and half fueled by the bad writing of her character. Like.... there is actually no shortage of total bitch, flawed female characters in fiction who are beloved. SYM is not well written, and the careful attention given to NH is not given to her.... it's worse than a lot of other c-dramas actually that they are supposedly criticizing. They mention that her parents died in a fire... okay so... how did this actually affect her beyond wanting to save her fictional family?? What if they just included more scenes about how the trauma of losing her family lead her to believe in fate? Or even that her unsuccessful career lead her to believe that no matter how hard she worked, she would never make it? That her career was in the hands of others, just like her parents lives? And that she may as well just not try and lay flat and try to be comfortable until her doom??? NH is supposed to show her that fate CAN be changed and she has the power to direct her own life?? Which is a lesson she did get to eventually but SOOO clunkily because they did not care to establish the base of her character. But if they better explored her trauma and her failures in her career, and also showed genuine growth and emotional scenes with the Song family, she would be so much more believable as a person.

As for the other characters... Song Yiting is just. I don't even really know what to say. SA'ing the man you proclaim to love to make it look like y'all are fucking in order to ruin your reputation is just... wtf. Like someone who can even think of a plot like this, even if you have no actual SA intention, is still a pretty awful person. The scene is really upsetting, and it's really not dealt with well, and for some reason, SYT is the one angry at SGH and NH afterwards and blames them for what happened??? When SHE came up w this plot and assaulted NH and it WOULD'VE been her boo SGH if he hadn't gotten arrested???? It's honestly just a mess. Not the worst dealing of SA I've seen in a cdrama but still pretty awful and not handled well. SYT was never held accountable for her actions, I guess because she's a pretty girl, so ?? Then it was never talked about again and if I completely ignore all of it, then SYT becomes a character I can't help but find adorable. But because it happened I feel really weird about her character?? Like other than this, SYT is more well written than SYM to me, and is very cute and enjoyable, and her dynamic with SGH is also endearing to me to an extent. At times it's definitely a bit uncomfortable how domineering she is and how much she attempts to wield her money and power over him to get him to do what she wants while simultaneously berating him for being a 'shitty guy' for not committing to her. IDK... like if you switch the genders it would have felt seriously uncomfortable. I have very mixed feelings on them.

Chu Guihong has the makings of a good villain, but is extremely under delivered. He goes from 1 -> 50 ->1000 WAYYYY too quickly. I liked what he said about SYM's pressure on him to be a good person being a jokerfying factor. I wish they pushed this further, and we could see just how much she negatively affected him.They made him too crazy like half way through the show, and only should've jokerfied him when he learns he's fictional..

Other than the characters the plot is quite fun! I think it's very fast paced, easily bingeable candy. The sense of humor, the large cast of loveable characters like Fugui, the Nightwalkers, even Nan Rui were all very fun to watch. It made the show really fun despite all its flaws. I also have to praise them on the finale, which I think was excellent. In bringing back the reincarnation element from the beginning, it tied the entire story together, gave the audience the typical melodramatic self sacrifice scenes, an ending to multiple relationship and character arcs (such as Nan Heng and dad, SYT and SGH, SYM and CGH, etc.) AND also could slam dunk their themes because they had enough time to do so! Despite the mid writing for most of the show, as well as their very low ambitions, they did communicate their theme very well: each and every person is important and is in control of their own destiny. Who cares if they are fictional, if they feel real then they are real. The problems with cdramas today is that they are made by writers that have no love for their own characters. SJYM said that writers must cherish their characters and respect them as you would real human beings! Hypocritically I do not think they actually were able to extend this respect to their very own FL, but the theme was communicated well. But I do have to criticize the sheer amount of flashbacks for EVERY significant moment!!! I IMMEDIATELY understood what SYM swinging the cloak around Nan Heng meant and actually felt a swell of emotion until they showed me the flashback of him doing that for her when they met. Respect your audience!!! They know what you meant!!! You're killing the moment with the flashback!!! Leave that work to the fan edits!!

All in all, the show suffers from the exact trappings of tropes it set out to criticize. There is so much more you can do with the nesting doll of fictional worlds, tropes and iconic scenes, more to subvert and more to play with. They didn't live up to this expectation, but it wasn't bad either, and I had a lot of fun along the way. Ultimately, in my eyes, if you just want to be entertained and don't have too high expectations or too much ML LYN idol bias then you'll have a good time with this show.

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My favorite of 2025 so far!

I gave this one a 10/10 before composing my review because I knew it was perfect. But, being that this drama received some criticism for its female lead, I wanted to give it a worthy analysis in addition to defending Song Yimeng.

🤍 Romance Quality 🤍

It was a joy to watch Liu Yuning and Li Yitong on-screen together. This was my second drama with Liu Yuning, and it was so interesting to compare Nan Heng's character with LYN's portrayal of Wei Shao in Prisoner of Beauty. I don't want to get sidetracked with comparisons here, I'm just stating my frame of reference for why I'm so impressed with LYN.

As for the romance in ADWAD, it starts out as a mixture of toxicity, intensity, and hilarity. Song Yimeng (Song Xiaoyu, but I'll refer to her as SYM for the sake of consistency here) garners a lot of criticism from viewers for how she treats Nan Heng (NH) for the majority of the series. I think these critics are forgetting the premise though. SYM is doing everything she can to survive the original script in which NH deceives her, cheats on her, abandons, and then tortures her. Who in her place would not do everything in their power to escape such a fate?

She gets there though, SYM. She falls for Li Sixteen, but that's NH. Then, she falls for NH himself. She defends him against the emperor, against Chu Gui Hong, against the screenwriter.

Putting those two aside, let's look at the other major romance in the show.

Song Yi Ting x Shangguan He? ADORABLE. Weirdly, I didn't see this coming even though they complement each other in much the same way NH and SYM do. One is more serious and forthright in their feelings. The other is ridiculous, but struggles for a long time with their affection. I do wish SYT and SGH could have had more moments earlier on, but I was satisfied with the way their relationship played out. SO GLAD for the reincarnation glitch. My heart was absolutely broken when I thought we'd lost our Second Boss the first time. ㅠㅠ

The romantic highlights for me were:

🤍 Li Sixteen's mask-removal kisses
🤍 SYM falling for Li Sixteen
🤍 NH defending himself as LS, lol
🤍 NH puling SYM in to play drums with him at the banquet
🤍 The way NH looked at SYM
🤍 The early intense animosity between SYM and NH... it got pretty serious at times (NH plotting his own death along with SYM and CGH was pretty wild, for example), but the show did a good job of not taking itself too seriously. It was meant to be surreal humor, and we knew that from the moment of the opening three-way stabbing 😂
🤍 NH/LS saving our SYM time after time, whether by choice or not
🤍 SYT's sincerity and determination toward Shangguan He 🤗
🤍 NH's proposal!!! The man gave her EVERYTHING she said she required, how many of us have dreamed of that kind of demonstration 😂 Friggin' perfect NH. I'll take him if SYM won't! (just kidding, I'm married to my own Nan Heng 🤣)

🤡 Comedy 🤡

I think this is one category I don't even really need to explore much. This show was hilarious. I have not laughed this hard since The Starry Love. I loved all the satire on the the genre (transmigration, historical romance), but the more amusing moments for me were cemented in the relationships between various characters. Jixiang had almost no lines, but his dynamic with Nan Rui was so great with his side-eye and RBF while Rui carried on being...Rui. In how it carried its characters with humor, this show reminded me of TSL in many ways. I'd even go so far as to say its comedy surpassed TSL, which was a VERY high bar to meet for me!


🎞️ Plot/Intrigue 🎞️

SYM's misunderstanding of NH did drag on longer than was comfortable. But I think the writers did a good job of driving home WHY this kept happening. The plot (and Chu Gui Hong, ugh) kept working against them.

I loved the Inception-ish reveal that, true to the title, they seemed to be in a story within a story (or a dream within a dream 🤪). NH's stepping into SXY's world at the very end didn't make sense, but we got our happy reunion. If I had to take any points away for this category, it might be for that, as it could be called lazy writing. But too often in these shows, we get an open or sad ending! See exhibit A:

- Till the End of the Moon - bittersweet, open ending
- Love Game in Eastern Fantasy - so-so, open ending
- Love Between Fairy and Devil - abrupt, though happy ending
- The Starry Love - bittersweet, open ending
- Moonlight Mystique - sad and abrupt happy ending
- The Story of Kunning Palace - abrupt, though happy ending

Here we got to see the very satisfying final battle where everyone came together to defeat CGH (third time's a charm? lol) followed by our leads and second leads as a happy couple (poor possibly preggo Shangguan He though? lolol). THEN, after the credits, we got to see SXY in the modern world, and... just when we're all afraid it was nothing but a dream, dashing NH shows up with his "White head, same heart." 😍 which we will all never forget, haha!

I loved the framing devices, the scheming, poetic justice, the romance, the rivalry, everything!

🎵 Soundtrack 🎵

One of the best OSTs! My favorite tracks were:

★ Hu Yanbin's "A Dream in Scrolls" might have been my favorite in the show, I think because it played to Nan Heng being... y'know, the beloved male lead. 😍

★ Liu Yuning's "长风谣 (Ballad of the Long Wind)" (opening theme) captures the playful and romantic adventure viewers are in for when they watch the show

★ Liu Yuning's "纸片人 (Paper Figure)" puts me back to every scene in which Nan Heng got hurt, and makes me want to give him a big hug. T_T HE JUST WANTS TO BE LOVED.

★ Chen Xueran's "夜游神 (Night Wanderer)" was so perfect for Li Sixteen! Very badass track!

★ Bu Cai's "宁做我 (Rather Be Myself)" likewise was perfect for Song Yimeng being the lead female! Loved her spirit and ferocity (standing up to Rong Hua after NH had just died in her arms, for example. Badass!)

★ Jane Zhang's "Twisted Cocoon" (ending credits) conveyed all the extra angsty moments.

★ That damn bridal sedan song LMAO Was so integral to some of those goofier scenes

🗺️ World-Building 🗺️

I loved how meta this show was, right down to side characters referring to themselves as "Passerby B" and "Lantern-selling Old Lady" 😂 It was such a different take.

The script world was your standard city-in-ancient-China, but the Waning River Crescent was stunning. The politics and palace drama did not really bring anything new to the genre, but it was all still engaging.

🌙 Visuals/Costume 🌙

This show had some knock-out costumes. My favorites:

1. SYM's rainbow sherbet colored hanfu.
2. SYT's blue/white hanfu.
3. ALL of Li Sixteen's costumes, dayumn.
4. The purple/gold garments for the ministers at court.
5. Nan Heng's armor (ok, mostly I just love Liu Yuning in a ponytail 👀)
6. Nan Heng's groom costume ❤️💛
6. Chu Gui Hong's consistent blues.
7. Nan Heng's bunny mask and proposal costume!~


🍿 Binge Factor 🍿

I stayed up way too many an evening to finish this show, but it was worth it! I only struggled toward the end when we kept going through reincarnations. It was hard to watch them die repeatedly. ;.;

🎭 Acting 🎭

LYT and LYN were wonderful leads! I have no complaints about their portrayals of SYM and NH.

This was my first time to see Riley Wang. OH. HOW ABOUT THAT? No it wasn't! He played Ran Yi in FOF? Well, wow! Very different kind of character from Shangguan He here in ADWAD. I'm impressed by his range, and I look forward to watching for more of him in other dramas!

I personally really liked Zhu Yu Dan in Love Game, so I'd like to watch more shows with her too.

Other actors that really shined:

★ Chang Long pulled off a really comical, outlandish Nan Rui
★ Loved to hate Wang You Shuo as Chu Gui Hong (he kinda cute tho, guys!)
★ Lu Xing as Daddy Song 🤗
★ Song Ji Yang's stoic performance and RBF as Ji Xiang

Wang Cheng Si was good, but seems like he gets type casted in this role. I felt his role in POB was stronger, but he served his purpose here in ADWAD. He did not particularly stand out to me though, simply because of the variety of other wild cast members.

🥷🏻 Conflict 🥷🏻

Fate vs agency, family vs self, modern world vs script world. This series had plenty of excellent conflicts for SYM and NH to navigate along with their loved ones.

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Inception, Chinese style?

When it rains it pours. A while ago we have the BFF to Lover prize fight. Now we have the "embedded world" showdown between this drama and First Night With the Duke. There are obvious similarities but they are also quite different. Let's focus on this show for now.

Dropping a modern boy/girl into a fictitious ancient world is hardly original. Most are based on the fish out of water trope. This series is no different. If anything, this drama never lets us forget that. We are constantly reminded of the link between the worlds. The in-jokes are everywhere. When the FL asked one of the random merchants his name, the reply was NPC A. The FL names their humble abode "Male Lead's Manor". Say no more!

Sure, the FL uses all her wiliness to fit in into the script world, but she also subverts it at every opportunity. She even educates the ML in the minutiae of plot devices and the power of the god like Scriptwriter. ;)

Alright, maybe the reference to Inception is a bit loose but it is not way off base. The title is a giveaway for starters. The ML also questioned whether the FL is part of a higher level script. A story within a story, so to speak. Her present-day reality is no more real than the ancient city surrounding them. Intriguing!

This is clever writing as most shows in this genre have trouble melding the worlds once the main story arc finishes. The lead might wake up from a nap in the dying minutes of the show. S/he then magically runs into the other lead in the present and is gifted the HEA ending. It is usually rushed and contrived. In this case, the ending is sweet and rewarding, but it is consistent with the overarching main plot so there is none of the crash landing back to reality malarkey.

So, does ADWAD deliver? Other than a few minor niggles, absolutely!

The basic plots are as old as time. The cleverness comes from the bending and blending them into Weapons of Mass Diversions.

You just never know when the cliché plot devices will be turned on their heads, and be totally subverted. This is particularly true in the last few eps. When most shows are winding down, this drama shifts up a gear and doubles down on the crazies!

More than once, I sat staring at the screen wondering whether the writer has been smoking a certain type of medicinal herb. The twists come on thick and fast. We recognise them individually, but the totality left me dazed. It twists the dramaverse into a pretzel. The audacity! Did they hire Doctor Strange as a consultant?

However, I think it did trip up a little mid show. It seems to be having too much fun with one particular cliché trope and got a bit carried away. Thankfully, the writer pulled back just in time.

One other minor niggle relates to the plot about the beloved Queen. Once the historical misunderstanding was resolved, the tone changed within minutes. When you consider the ML was castigated for 20 years, it feels . . off. Let bygones be bygones. Kumbaya, anyone?

In terms of acting, our leads are in their element. The romantic Force is strong with them. There is a decent amount of skinship as well, and they feel right. The support cast earned their keep. I’m sure they had a blast making this series.

The production value is consistently high. Most sets are lush and elaborate. Special effects are of good quality. The OST is pumping. It has everything. From classics to pop to hip hop. There was a bit of imbalance in the volume level in the beginning. It was soon corrected.

This show surprised me repeatedly and in a good way. This show is very self aware and indirectly fourth wall breaking. I certainly had more than the odd chuckle. It was a struggle to decide if I should rate it higher. In the end, I have to accept that It is close to, but not perfect. Kudos to everyone involved though. Its subversive nature might cause purists to roll their eyes. I for one, give thanks for this unconventional gem. Peace.

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Artistically brilliant in every aspect, immersive guessing game & lesson to resist the preordained

This drama is an all-round artistic creation, fulfilling practically all the purposes of the arts, which I'll break only in several (major) points in the following, representing the reasons for my first time ever 10/10 rating for a drama

1. It stirs up all range of emotions, thoughts and reflections

If you decide to watch, know you'll get seduced, irritated, moved, shocked, amused, depressed, entertained, anxious, sucked into a continous guessing game on why things are happening, on what happens next and how it will happen, you'll love and you'll hate, in short, it will occupy your full attention, your heart and your brain cells. Believe me, even if you decide to drop it after a while, it will only mean you were too moved, you won't drop it bc. you were indifferent or bored

2. It breaks barriers (/transcending and lingering in a space) between fiction and reality, between imagined and realised, it explores different, multilayered realities (or, better, "fictionalities")

The plot is more or less explained in the official MDL synposis but I'll have to make it less abstract in order to explain how it breaks barriers. You've already got there are 2 parallel stories, one taking place in a (fictionalised) modern time "reality" and the other in a fictional, Jing empire, script-written in the 1st story. Due to the fact all the first-tier actresses refused to take the role of a tragic and desperate FL and in a horribly written costume-drama story, an unaware and mediocre actress is called to take this part. Skimming lazily and superficially (that's her character) through the script on her couch, she first gets irritated and then sucked into the 2nd story. Breaking through this barrier is accompanied with a typing sound which will be often used later in the drama. The ancient Greek/Roman theatre "production" used a special mechanical device producing sounds to represent a "divine intervention" in their dramas, known as "deus ex machina". This expression also has its broader meaning and today is largely used for a particular writing/storytelling technique: when narrative uses one story to tell, explain, or manipulate the interpretation of another, apparently unrelated, story. Like right now, I'm telling 'u a story on the ancient Greek theatre to explain what is happening in this C-costume drama. This "deus ex machina" sound will be repeated every time there's a "divine intervention", and who is the main divinity in a scriptwritten story? The Scriptwriter, obviously. Who is a bad person in the drama, having written such a horrible script. FL refers to him as a God several times while trying to explain his role to the ML, who also hears that typing sound. Actually, when ML hears it, it isn't bad for the FL, it means "ML must save the FL every time she is in danger". That's why this "God" is... maybe... redeemable.

3. It stimulates empathy, personal growth, healing and the process of self-awareness while we are bonding with characters, passing through the same processes of self-discovering,

Now we must take a better look on the strongest value of these 2 stories: its characters. I usually prefer action over characterisation, because actions (+ choices, decisions, dialogues etc) are mostly to determine the characters, actions drive the plot (actions are the basic morphology, the structure, of a story), but in this drama we've got a proper, almost perfect characterisations BEFORE we've seen their actions. It was a great effort in order to make sense in an apparently (and intentionally) messy plot. First, the two leading actors totally immersed in and conveyed their characters. We (=the audience) first see the story from the FL's perspective - a typical "heroine" in a C-costume drama,: lazy, superficial, stubborn... - but with a great gift: she is DEEPLY HUMAN and can't be anything but human, all her flows are human, even when she plots the murder of the ML it's out of her human fear. She finished in that Jing world and still deeply cares about her "family" in there, about the insignificant "paper-people", she is all Yin, all Emotion. When the perspective changes to the ML, we see this HERO, a total Yang, capable of carving his own destinity even before he met her. In order to free himself from the first "puppeteer" who tried to control him, he founded his own powerhouse - Waning River Crescent, the Nightwalkers and his alternative identity as Li Shu Liu. He is all Strategy and Power, ready to be subdued only by Emotion. Typical but the actors made them quite interesting, if not original. And a plethora of side characters made a lot of sense and were given space to show their strenghts... Such care and respect for all the characters is so rare in costume dramas.

4. It challenges the unjust societal rules & pre-written destinies while outlining alternative futures

This is probably the best part of the drama, concentrated in the last quarter. It's a parody of its genre, but also has a a high moral to defend the dignity of this genre, while conveying the power of rebellion and resistence against all the odds.

5. It is expressed in "the universal language" which transcends all (linguistic, cultural, mental...) barriers, it is the language of beauty, surprise, marvel, the art which reveals itself through well crafted visual details, aestethics, music, sounds...

This drama is unique for the unique effort all the well-crafted participants/crew members put in it, no flows. The sound/music department truly contributed to build up the story. All along.
The costumes? The visuals? The references and homages they've disseminated together with the clues? Pure joy.

An iconic drama to be remembered and will remain long with you after you've seen it.
Now, I'll go to rewatch it again. :)

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ADWAD; Historical World, Real World...Both FAKE! The Bar Has Been Set!

I started watching this show for LYN; was very interested in how he would handle this character since he essentially was playing 3 of them and this supposedly regular transmigration story into a book. I knew many of the actors including the FL and support so it was fine; they all did a wonderful job for the most part. What I completely didn't expect was that this was totally not a regular story but that both historical and modern worlds were fake! Ep. 1 and 40 show things as well in the story itself that not all is what it seems especially when what I call the "glitch in the matrix" starts happening. The ending itself is an LSD trip of epic proportions and both as it ends and after the credits so don't forget to watch that. The bar has definitely been set for future both regular historical ones and transmigration dramas.

Pros: LYN nailed his performance as both NH and Zorro as I called him or LSL. This was such an unconventional role and series for him that he just literally seemed to be rolling with the punches. His crying scenes were so spot on. It's like LYN both put himself and at the same time totally disappeared when he embodied those roles. I remember reading an interview that he gave where he said when he first got the script and read his character, he wasn't sure he would be able to portray him properly given the fact there's literally two fake worlds and understand everything, but after much thought and contemplation, he decided to give it a go, and I'm very glad that he did because I don't think any other actor would have been able to portray this role the way he did. His ability for ruthlessness is already known well as is the softer side of him but being able to show his silly and romantic side was also awesome. Playing a figure at first who's "an A-List celebrity" but in the transmigrated world a man wronged and blamed by the world for things he never did (death of the Empress and not coming to the aid of his so called childhood friend at the cost of that person's father and 20,000 soldiers; called the God of Death trying to have himself vindicated as he's being set up continuously. Imprisoned in the cold palace since childhood, then sent off to the border to fight as the emperor in his blind and sadistic hatred towards him wanted to control and take away his power and if he died at the border, all the better for everyone who didn't know the truth.

The FL or SYM/SYX played by LYT who did very well playing her parts; both of them. Who would have thought that both she in her real world and the historical one as well as the ML were both fake characters and in the mind of the scriptwriter not that we later meet in the historical but the writer of the show we are watching and is a woman. That part was brilliant. Anyways, in episode 1 the FL was a lazy Z-List actress that was the last on a list to be chosen to play the FL plus for some reason the ML had specifically chosen her. So when she transmigrates, she's in fear for her life based on what she little read from the fake script & of the ML so she tries desperately to get out of that marriage & run to SML to get married however, every single time she tries, she ends up hysterically dying only to get resurrected to try time & time again & it being put into this humorous montage, she is just trying to save her family & avoid ML at all costs, which also does not work at least avoiding the ML. But she does save her family. Plus, there are certain tropes in the fake script that say things like when FL is in danger, ML must save her so she tries very hard to avoid those but unfortunately they still happen whether the ML is the one trying to kill her from the original script for whatever reason he still ends up saving her & even he doesn't understand what's going on because a lot of the times it's his intention to kill her because he's still going by that old script & if he kills her, then he may get the support of her family which is written in that old script but then because everyone hears typing sounds; so he ends up basically harming himself when trying to harm her because he saves her.

Then comes the creation of LSL and the Crescent River Nightwalkers who weren't in the original script but obviously there because the real scriptwriter wrote them in to counteract FL's hate and fear of the ML to someone who wears a mask and so obviously him to everyone except FL and SFL (who later also falls for him but thankfully that is worked out and quickly). Now FL quickly without fail falls for LSL or Zorro as I call him but that's the real NH. I love Zorro and his nightwalkers. They are great characters all of them, especially SGH who falls for SYM's sister SYT; they are a couple number two. And I have to say SYT is ridiculously smart in this series fake script not the original story but in this one she reads SYM to rights in regards to treating NH the way she does after the whole he's tried to kill me thing is over. And even after the leads have gotten together, she still tells her what she has done wrong; she's just smart in general. She's very feisty and knows what's going on, doesn't drag stuff out, knows what she wants. She's a great character.

I am very proud of WYS who plays the main antagonist or CGH who I called Darth Vader. This is the actor's first real role playing a villain and he did so well; his psychopathy was evident from childhood making me think he was born with it. As the series progressed, we started to understand that he wouldn't just snap out of it when the truth came out but that you could write the truth in giant letters in the sky and he would still find fault with it and the way his face contorted with almost orgasmic pleasure when torturing one of our Nightwalker guys who he falsely imprisoned told me everything I needed to know about him. He almost reminded me of Richard Ramirez the serial killer who always displayed the same sick smile. Glad he was dead. The actor who played the Emperor was awesome in the way he played him going from sadistic emperor (who I still do not give the redemption arc to) to basically a pussycat simp was kind of strange and kind of funny. The way he treated NH and through most of it until he found out the truth of who killed the Empress and what really happened in that battle was so despicable and disgusting. He literally seemed to enjoy NH's pain and suffering that sometimes he himself inflicted. The definition of a true sadist. When they were changing their own fates in the script (going through the two reincarnation phases) did he finally basically in his own weird way apologize to NH for everything. It was too much for too long. Uncle villain was responsible for the death of the empress and the whole battle fiasco among many other things framing NH because in his words, he wanted to make his nephew ruthless, so he basically killed innocent people, and tried to kill and harm those that NH loved to create that; it was basically an excuse because he wanted to seize power himself.

Fake Scriptwriter who wanted everyone to get back and do the iconic scenes just so he could return to the fake modern world was a villain in himself, though no one listened to him even when he created havoc with ML's health. We started getting more glitches in the matrix that we noticed as well as a moth or a butterfly that had started to appear early on in the series and I personally was wondering about it, but later on figured out that that was the actual real scriptwriter of both worlds. In the end, the fake scriptwriter finally joined the good guys to defeat Darth Vader (that final battle with Darth Vader was so awesome because when the townspeople as well as FL's family and ministers who also helped out came running in, they called themselves like passerby F or folk D or passerby A, passerby B; they didn't have real names because they were NPC's lol and that was so funny but at the same time, it was so great when they were all coming together to fight this one major villain, and the rock music going on was chef's kiss).

Other great characters Nightwalkers along with SGH (only he knew NH was LSL), Yun Long & Shan He, who were both great brothers & arms to Zorro; he created them as Zorro because he didn't want them to know who he really was until eventually, he had to tell them, but they still backed his play, Fugui who was the hilarious assistant to NH but couldn't read the room for shit as well, but he sometimes said a simple sentences that in a complex world & mind of NH just made all the sense. Donkey for brains a.k.a. 18th Prince, became a little wiser mending his grudge with NH & always had a good heart. Jixiang, FL's father the sly fox; and the rest of her family. Finally, because we know that the series had a decent budget so the costumes, sets, OSTs, CGI and comedy was top notch.

Cons: The biggest problem I had was the FL or SYM in the second arc. My biggest problem with her was the way she treated ML after the first arc was over. He's no longer trying to kill her. He has changed. Everything has changed; the original script is no longer what it was even the iconic scenes that she's so terrified of are no longer what they were. Everyone around her has changed except her. She is so ingrained with the original script that she cannot go beyond it and her vile verbal abuse goes too far, she makes him cry with all of the God-awful stuff she says to him and it was because the arc was stretched for too long too many episodes. And she's always bringing up a script (that's already changed that she hasn't noticed) that he has no knowledge of like it's the damn gospel. Yes, they both had miscommunication because he kept stuff from her later on too, so he had his own faults 100%; but she goes way too far with everything else.

Would I recommend this? I totally 100% would. It is totally worth it. Not to mention that LSD trip at the end! So give it a chance!

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There was really just one major flaw

I absolutely loved this show. The whole trope of a young woman falling into a script that she was supposed to act in, filled with characters that she is familiar with was well done by the producer. I was effortless. Yet a key issue that stood out to me was, in fact, the casting of SYM. Li Yitong is a decently known actress who has been in the industry for over 10 years, yet despite this great perseverance, she is still only known for pretty looks. The character of SYM is so much more complex than a pretty face, and this is where the casting draws issues.
The character of SYM, who is aware of the future in the script had valid worries towards NH. Any reasonable person would stay 6 feet away from the man destined to kill them. Yet the character of SYM was constructed to be vulnerable. Not is a damsel in distress kind of way, but one who faces immense internal conflicts. Should she remove him from her destiny to prevent her inevitable demise, or trust in him who she has faced countless battles with, the man who she pities for his complex and traumatising background? There is a degree of vulnerability that is required within this role, something that Li Yitong is unable to project.
Due to this SYM is shown to be a heartless, hard-headed and frustrating character. The lack of flexibility in the acting creates some sort of MPD disorder within the character, which irks the viewers.
SYM is also supposed to in love with NH yet each and every emotional moment is just her with her cold eyes, unphased by the affection of NH. It makes you question whether she truly loves him or is holding a knife to his neck for the next time her MPD hits. Her love is untrustworthy, which makes the story so much more toxic than it was meant to be. I almost dropped the show 17 episodes in because of this but stayed for NH, SGH and SYT.
The love story between SYT and SGH is a strange form of tragic. It ends happily yet you still feel this sense of longing towards the characters, a hope for closure. SYT who resembles SGH, captures his heart. She is beautiful, talented and smart, he is aloof, yet he picks up the sword to protect her. Their scenes are *chef's kiss* with a perfect harmony of comedy, and pure romance.
NH is the man. Liu Yuning captivates the audience with his effortless, and charming demeanour, his comedic mishaps that are delivered with pure perfection, and the sentimental scenes that breaks the audience's heart. Hats off to him for this performance. He was the reason I continued.
The story is wonderful, none of the genres contrast with one another, being a period piece, a comedy, a romance and a drama is incredibly hard, and although it pales in comparison to LGIEF it has its perks. The main issue would probably be the unnecessary over villainising of characters, such as the father. Yet he was a partial, and horrible dad to NH, yet no sane father would wield a sword against his young son, starve and throw him into fire. This was an over exaggeration, yet it is not as bad as SYMs blunder.

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