Celebrity 
This review may contain spoilers
Breezy watch but huge plot gap at the end, inconsistent acting
It took me three tries to pick this back up as i couldnt for the life of me get past episode 2 with its heavy dialogues and so many female characters in the zhong residence introduced then.Anyway it's nice breezy watch, weirdly. And has very high rewatch value - I've watched it 5x more since the first completion! I think it was because the plotlines and conflicts were focused and easy to follow, and it's not highly dramatic and political. It was all about the FL dying and coming back again to do some things differently so the course of fate will be changed. The writing sticks to this very closely and i appreciate that as alot of cdramas cant decide what they want and have poorly written middle arcs with tons of useless side plots.
However u are gonna get a huge shock of your life when you get to the last 3 episodes or so. Cos it literally means whatever u have been watching the past 25 episodes meant nothing lol. That was a massive letdown in my opinion and the writing completely fell apart around then too, with random cameos from different actors that made no sense to the plot and a very abrupt ending. Just a huge massive letdown. I was like whuttt did i just see.
Anyway there are 3 male leads and im only here for wxy, but he rarely appears for some reason. Although this is a yuzheng production and hes the main one in the poster. The other two have fully fleshed out stories and appear very often. However neither of them catch my attention and arent very outstanding in acting (esp the husband actor) so i ended up ff-ing alot of their scenes. Also I got the ick everytime they showed romantic scenes with her bodyguard - lilke seriously.
I also had no idea how zhou ye and wxy characters even fell for each other. It was so random and whatever. And he was chasing her all the time and she never showed interest. Head scratcher.
The acting is just inconsistent and not great. Wxy is not bad but his character wasnt fleshed out and he didnt have alot to work with. I feel he does well in charscters that are ambiguous and have an intense and ambiguous/not very pleasant side like zhong xiwu. Zhou ye wasnt outstanding though, she mostly had no expressions and i couldnt feel any emotions except in ep 1 and 30. And she had a very haughty expression throughout. Lol. The guard actor was fine and li yunrui was again outstanding. He always manages to stand out in side characters despite them not being great characters. The mu yao and the husband actors were the worst. Muyao only had one facial expression throughout.
The sets and costumes looked very low budget and cheap. The FL clothes always looked like they were recycled tablecloth. The men were also poorly styled with low quality looking garments and bad hair/makeup. Wxy didnt look good at all in this updo. But yu zheng productions always look and feel cheap for whatever reason
As this was a light watch with no tiresome revenge arcs and screeching characters, i see myself rewatching this in future often. Oddly. As i never rewatch cdramas. 30 ep is also manageable.
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The anti-hero female lead who we all love
It is a story about the stereotypical evil second female lead whose life is ruined but is given a second chance to redeem herself or more like save her family. Her second life revolves three male leads. However, there is also a big plot twist which I’m not gonna spoil as it’s the most important part of the story.Our female lead, Hua Qian, is definitely the best part of this drama. She’s become smart, strong, cool, calm and badass due to the pain she suffered in her first life. She’s not the crybaby female lead who needs a prince in shining amour to save her. As her second journey goes, we can’t help but guess which of the three main leads is in her heart.
Zhong Xi Wu who’s in this life falls in love with her due to her changed personality (in previous life he fell for Mu Yao, the 2nd females lead there are more story to this but I won’t spoil). He’s the lord with controlling personality and willing to protecting female lead at all cost especially without her consent sometimes but he’s sincere and willing to look pass everything. Wheareas, Zhong Ye Lan, who she stole from Mu Yao, is now married with her. He is quite a coward and it’s hard to say whether he loves our female lead or not; however, he actually did something right for her near the end. Hua Rong Zhou is our female lead’s guard who has been loving her since he first saw her. He’s quite stubborn, cross the line sometimes but is willing to sacrifice his life for her. Each male leads have huge flaws which I cannot ship her with anyone.
The bond between female lead and her family is also worth mentioning. All of them started as the selfish family to sacrifice her lives for each other. Made me cry a lot.
All the actors and actresses did a fantastic job there. But I have to applaud Zhou Ye specifically. This drama really shows her range of acting and I was really impressed by her. And I love Ai Mi, she’s great as always. I’m glad to see the sly character of Li Yun Rui again.
I love the closing song 来(Come) by 陆虎(Lu Hu). It made me imagine and look forward the happy life that our Hua Qian deserves after those hardships at the end of every episodes.
I will definitely watch an again for the details that I miss during the early episodes. The twist was foreshadow in many episodes and in the title too. Whiling watching this. all I want is our female lead to be happy and I’m sure you’ll too as she suffers so much.
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A Great Ending (not saying sad or happy, it's not a spoiler)
First time writing a Review , bear with meAs you all know ending is very important in your opinion of how you value a drama after you see it.
A bad drama with good ending can raise the value and a good drama with bad and rushed ending can destroy it for you.
This drama had a unique and wonderful ending. You can see it that in the entire drama they were preparing for it and it wasn't like one those dramas that you feel the director woke up and decided that He wanted to end his drama some way depending on his mood. (LOOOTS of dramas are this way)
About the acting it was nicely done. PWY did a good job and I could feel his emotion through screen.
In the Back From The Brink I was completely disappointed in ZY and I didn't want to watch her dramas again. However, now I'm glad that I didn't make that mistake. Her acting was great and I will definitely continue her work.
Wish the best for both of them.
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Plain Piece of Toast
Life do-over very similar to "Till the End of the Moon", minus the crazy magical element. This is a very plain piece of toast drama.The ML.... who is the SML up till now (ep. 9), is wonderful, as he always is. Actually, all the actors are well-cast in this. No weak players here. But there is no plot to be found yet.... at ep. 9... and that's pretty late to be looking for a plot. This could have easily been a really good "slice of life" drama.... except.... it wants to become a melodrama, which would give it some flavour, but I personally don't like melodrama. It kind of wanted to be another "A Dream of Splendor" drama, but fails in the story department.
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Awesome FL - Meaningful Reverse Harem - Great Character Arcs - Morals and Values exploration
Of all the shows that had the reverse harem tags that I have watched, this was the first time watching a meaningful character arc and chemistry between the FL and various ML for me. It wasn't forced, each of them had a role to plan and each of them contributed to the FL's character growth. This show had a good exploration of right and wrong, and how humans tend to be both good and evil. You rarely see a show where the characterization is not polarized. Nobody is perfect (not even the ML) and nobody is without a flaw.I personally loved the ending - thought it was both fitting and sweet. (2nd ML felt always a little too good to be true, so maybe that signalled my brain to not expect too much.)
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This review may contain spoilers
A treasure in c-dramaland - Beautiful Heartbreaking Full of Life Lessons Story
Oh where to begin.The FL wakes up to redo her mistakes only to learn you cant turn back time. Its heartbreaking but beautiful story. The romance is on another level with FL bent on undoing what can't be undone. And the ML was the epitome of a rich boy who was selfish and embroiled in his own love. And when he realizes his folly, the pride doesn't leave him. What a perfect characterization. I simply loved the ML character.
A part of me wished the drama had ended where Xiwu leaves the food Hua Qian makes for him. Alas the reality kicks in.
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Timeless masterpiece
I seriously loved this.I'm usually prone to scene skipping if I find a drama predictable or boring, but this drama OMG! I loved every bit of it! I was completely hooked.
I LOVED the "old" drama vibes I got from it so much. Adored how the director paid attention to the little details (like the makeup and the girl's painted nails). I really liked the filters that were used that made it look like a 2015 historical drama, seriously it was really suitable and I honestly really liked it.
The Fl's makeup should have a whole fandom on its own. It was simply magnificent. It looked soft, feminine and I really appreciate how it could easily be straight out of a reimagined period painting.
I personally really liked the plot and the ending. I consider it to be very fitting and the whole ordeal seems very poetic to me
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To me HRZ existed bc of the Fl's need to have someone whom she can completely trust, someone who will always do what she wants and who won't threaten her comfort zone, who'll never make her challenge herself and face her fears. So she created him in her head bc with him she can run away from everything she's really scared of, which is sincerely loving someone else , bc then she'll feel vulnerable as he'll be able to hurt her ( e.g. by betraying her or something). At the end she chose the real world and so she chose to bravely face evey challenge, which to me is the ultimate character development and I applaud it.
The cast's chemistry was amazing. Especially between the Fl and the ml. At numerous scenes I wanted to shout JUST KISS ALREADY. Just my personal opinion here but a kiss would make certain scenes shine even more. In many scenes you could literally see the poor ml fight for his life so as not to kiss her. Would love to see them in another drama together.
The chemistry between Fl and HRZ was really great as well. You could feel how comfortable she was around him. I kinda shipped them together but I prefer the FL-ML pairing more. I would love to see them in another drama together as well.
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This review may contain spoilers
jaw dropped
It’s 6am I’m so sleep deprived cause of binging this drama, i was HOOKED the way I didn’t expect much when starting it due to the plain looking poster but look what i got myself into, I won’t go into the plot summary cause you can quite literally see it everywhere but I love it! I’ve never seen anything like this actually where one tries to change their past but it ends up being a dream that’s the most logical way but didn’t expect that in dramas. The hints with the fragrances instantly made me realise what the plot twist was but when it happened i was still shocked their acting just makes me feel everything. A lot of tissues were used when watching this but everything added up so perfectly. Although I’m still quite bittersweet about the romance between the ML and FL but it makes sense this easily became one of my favourites, one of the only dramas I’d actually rewatch. All the characters portrayed their characters so well there wasn’t a single flaw in my eyes, I absolutely adored the family moments and bawled my eyes out when it was all shattered 🥲 definitely recommend it, Zhou ye showed it all here.Was this review helpful to you?
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scent of time is the most exciting yet calming drama of this year
Hua Qian, who is a spoiled brat get a second chance. to do everything she did wrong in the past that led to her and her family’s demise. therefore she changes her ways and starts anew, making good friends and relationships with the people she originally cast aside .I truly enjoyed her character and how she changed completely to a good loving human. It was touching to see her growth. personally I feel Zhang Xiwu was the one for her from the beginning and I don’t see why they couldn’t just be together.
The ending a little frustrating but befitting in a way. I would’ve love to see them together atleast for a few minutes. However, atleast she left her dream so I guess that was an acceptable ending.
Zhang Xiwu was probably the best character in the show then second is Hua Qian. The fact that he loved despite her immaturity and cruelty was just astounding. I hope they’re story is beautiful even out of viewers eyes🥹
overall this is a touching drama with all the right elements needed to make you satisfied with the entire show
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Not enough, need more
Scent of Time* is a beautifully crafted drama that goes far beyond the typical romance. While it contains love, heartbreak, and longing, its true strength lies in its exploration of regret, redemption, and the consequences of the choices we make.The story follows a heroine who is given an extraordinary opportunity to confront the mistakes of her past and alter her future. Rather than focusing solely on romance, the drama asks deeper questions about fate, forgiveness, and whether a person can truly change when given a second chance. This emotional depth sets it apart from many other historical dramas.
The acting is exceptional throughout the series. The cast brings genuine emotion to their roles, making the characters feel layered and realistic. The female lead delivers a particularly strong performance, portraying a woman burdened by regret while striving to become a better version of herself. Her growth is one of the most rewarding aspects of the drama.
Visually, *Scent of Time* is stunning. The cinematography, costumes, and soundtrack create an atmosphere that is both elegant and melancholic. Every scene feels carefully crafted to reflect the emotional journey of the characters.
What impressed me most was that the drama did not rely on endless misunderstandings or exaggerated conflicts. Instead, it focused on personal growth, family relationships, and the impact our actions have on those around us. The romance is meaningful, but it never overshadows the larger themes of accountability and redemption.
Overall, *Scent of Time* is a moving and thought-provoking drama that lingers in your mind long after the final episode. It is a story about learning from the past, accepting responsibility, and discovering that true change comes from within. I highly recommend it to viewers who enjoy character-driven stories, emotional depth, and historical dramas with substance.
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This review may contain spoilers
Is in my top 4 of best drama's in 2023..
Let me start with a big compliment for the cast of this drama!! Almost everything was perfect.I didn’t think I would love this so much but starting with episode 1 I was already hooked to this drama. Made some long nights 😉
Zhou Ye, I liked her acting here much so more than Back from the brink, my heart and emotions went sometimes all over the place, you could feel the hurt and the disappointments. the last episode, omg, her acting, that was really amazing and I have rewatched that part, a few times. Hope to see many more drama’s of her.
Wang Xing Yue, this guy can act, the first time i saw him in a drama it was the one and only. And I was already amazed by his acting, and he is still so young (21 years). In this drama, he didn’t disappoint me, he was even much better than expected. the parts that he let her know how he feels about her and the rejections, the jealous scenes. I will definitely keep track of him with the coming dramas.
I liked the chemistry between the leads, every scene they had to together was a gift to watch them…
Zhang Yi Jie, never seen him in one the drama’s that I have watched before. But I liked his acting in this drama and will check his other ones.
The story, I liked.... the end?? If it would have had 10 extra minutes, I think that the end would have been perfect… it is not a sad ending, but it would have been nice, if you could have seen her face at the end when she said his name…
Will rewatch this for sure! I highly recommend.
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Best drama that you need to watch ❤️
If you’re looking for a good drama, go to watch this drama now. This is the best drama in 2023 for me. It’s had a beautiful storyline and all the characters were so good at acting. I love Hau Qian and Rong Zhou so much 😭❤️ While I watching this I always get butterflies when I saw them together 😭 I like the way he protect her, the way he worries about her, especially I love their chemistry so much ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️Was this review helpful to you?
