The Double

Addictive! melodrama using all the tricks in the book to keep you glued to the screen.

This is like a sugar binge in a drama form. Not because it's sweet (unless we're talking sweet poison^^), but because you can't help but eat it all at once for the rush of excitement it gives you, then wonder how come there's no more ...and what do you mean it's been 40 episodes already? The slump is real but short-lived. After a bit you start craving more wholesome food;) Seriously though, it is a rare drama for me that's so unapologetically in-your-face about being pure emotion-driven entertainment without sacrificing the storytelling. If you strip all the melodramatic elements, the story at its core is still powerful enough to engage and resonate with you.

The storyline can be divided into three parts. The first focuses on the heroine's downfall, subsequent return to the capital under a new identity (coincidentaly on purpose both characters share the same nickname: A-Li) and her attempts at restoring the real Jiang Li’s reputation. Fortunately, most of the pain and suffering was reserved for the villains in this drama, so we're not hit with a prolonged account of all the wrongs done to both girls at the start. There's nothing groundbreaking here in terms of plot which involves the typical household scheming, but it's very fast-paced and entertaining.
Second part deals with A-Li trying to uncover the truth of what happened to her real family. She goes on a trip and gets herself thrown in jail (twice). We also see a lot more of the male lead, Duke Su aka Xiao Heng, as their intimacy grows, so we're treated to some epic flirting. Oh, the amount of double entendres flying around! They both loved to tease each other about everything from being a straight-faced liar to having a pretty sulking face ...and it was the FL that did the lying while the ML did the sulking.
The third part is all about the villains reaping what they sowed and the culmination of a drama-long scheme involving the emperor. We also finally explore Duke Su's past but it gets overshadowed by the villains drama. Be prepared for the dramatics to go up a few notches. Best practice: take your thinking cap off entirely for the finale.

What I liked about this drama:

As a revenge story, it's emotionally engaging without crossing into ridiculous or depressing. Thankfully, it didn't sacrifice logic (too much) for the sake of delivering a more spectacular face-slapping. The villains have some depth to them. Their backstories show us how they were compelled to turn to the dark side, making their motivations more complex and understandable.

As a female-centric drama it stayed true to the theme. I don't remember the last time I liked a female lead in a c-drama as much. She had such a calming presence and looked enviably zen while exacting her revenge. A well-rounded character that was genuinely strong, brave, cunning but also compassionate and protective of others around her.

As a melodrama it made clever use of music, visuals, comedic exaggeration and pathos to enhance the emotional impact and draw viewers into the scene. Some of those stylistic choices were jarring at first, like the frequent use of extreme close-ups with actors looking directly at the camera or rather at you... There's definitely some flirting with breaking the fourth wall in those shots. It makes you feel like you're invited to be a part of the conversation, not just a passive observer, all in line with the immersive theatre theme. But there were also fun elements - I found it endlessly entertaining that the male protagonist would always enter or exit the 'stage' in some kind of dramatic fashion.

Although romance is clearly not the focus of the drama, it was the highlight for me. What I especially liked about A-Li and Xiao Heng's relationship was that there were no ridiculous misunderstandings or made-up trouble just for the sake of cheap dramatics. From the start, there's this feeling of tacit connection between them. Since there was no need to rehash everything on screen, they made good use of their time together to flirt and tease each other;) All throughout the drama they're busy with their own agendas while keeping an eye on each other and offering support when needed. That usually meant XH stepping in when A-Li got herself into trouble, which was sort of the running theme in the first half of the drama. It had the knight-in-shining-armour vibe but only on the surface. XH could offer her resources she didn't have and A-Li was smart enough to use him, just as she was aware he used her in his own schemes. The deep trust and uderstanding allowed these two to stand unshakably strong together while all sorts of drama raged around. That's about my favourite type of couple.
The leads chemistry went a long way to compensate for the sparseness of their scenes together. Both Wu Jinyan and Wang Xingyue seemed to have a lot of fun playing these characters and looked very comfortable with each other. They had little difficutly switching between the playful, more theatrical acting and the serious, emotive kind as needed. I liked them both immensely.

The harmonious relationship between the main leads contrasted strongly with the angsty, violent, misguided tragimance that was Shen Yurong and Wanning story. I can't say I liked them, but they were definitely memorable. No effort was spared to make us feel for what amounted to an emotional warfare between the fallen once honorable scholar and the disturbed, possessive princess. It's quite hard to stay indifferent to them as a result, even if the only thing you feel like doing is actively cheer for them to kill each other. I have to admit they succeeded with softening my feelings towards Wanning somewhat by the end. Mostly because I believed she genuinely fell in love, even if her method of securing that love was completely demented. Not with Shen Yurong though, I wholeheartedly detested that murderous coward right to the bittersweet end. I have to give it to the actors, they were both chillingly good in their roles. Liang Yongqi left such a deep impression on me as Shen Yurong, I probably won't be able to enjoy him in another role for a while. Li Meng perfected the haughty princess I-can-trample-you-like-an-ant look, but there was a bit too much theatricality in her portrayal for me to really connect with the character.

What I'm not so thrilled about:

Let's be honest the drama has derailed in the finale. I don't even know what to call that last battle scene, other than some weird visual fetish. It's like they run out of episodes to tell the rest of the story but still had a lot of expensive scenes left, so decided to include them all with little care to the storyline. Better project management next time guys!

I wish they gave us more happy moments with the lead couple and their families in the last few episodes. That would've been a much needed (and well-earned) breather from the angsty villain arc. Alas, it isn't that kind of drama.

Some scenes were obviously just added for shock value, including an unnecessarily high death toll. Needlessly killing off well-liked characters is a sure way for a drama to get on my shitlist. On that note, going into battle with no armour or helmet had me facepalming so hard I hurt myself.

Why on earth did they bring ML’s grandfather so late in the story? We could've had 40 episodes of their banter!! I feel robbed. Xiao Heng deserved to be a better developed, more complex character. It looked like they planned for it in the last arc but run out of episodes... I'm not sure, but it was a little disappointing.

Not a fan of the way they resolved Shuran's story arc. It was way too convenient and incomplete, especially with how long the drama lingered on her story.

This one is more of my own making. I unfortunately went to Douban to read some comments when I started watching this drama. One of them said that the FL looked like a blind person and I couldn't unsee it for the rest of the drama;( I liked Wu Jinyan's acting on the whole but sometimes her gaze really looked empty.

But all that's minor stuff, go and let yourself be seduced by this epic melodrama with no regrets!

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“As You Like iI”, its a double win!

Congratulations to Wu Jinyan on her comeback drama in her forte of revenge-driven FL and Wang, Xingyue to his breakout drama as ML.Their hot chemistry, acting from them as well as other supporting cast with a story telling in fast paced and suspence manner contriburted a lot Without a doubt, Yuzheng, a producer and showman with a flair for building buzz, had this double motivation. He also no doubt believed in the Law of Attraction since, a few weeks after the death of the NFL star turned actor who was charged with the double killing of his ex-wife and her male friend , he announced the show's premiere. That was sensational trial dubbed “the trial of the century” with overwhelming evidence which he succeeded with an acquital; for the drama opened with a husband killing his wife, the FL.However there is no doubt of the writer's opinion for he demonstrated that in the court trial when the FL's glib -tongued and quick wit which was comparable to Portia , from Shakespeare “A Merchant of Venice”, successfully defended her father against corruption.The scene mimicked the famous speech of Mark Anthony from “Julius Caesar”in distinguishing the fake and real honorouble man for the hard evidence was in the assets.Anybody can swear and say 10,000 words but action always belied the words between the false and the true. ( The FL's huband ,SYR, was like Brutus, one of "Julius Caesar's" closest friends, a seemly honorable man who betrayed and killed ,out of ambition. The antagonists SYR and the princess were the “Anthony and Cleopatra”of the drama,,a love relationship using each other for their own ends and ended up in nothing) )

Uundoubtedly the writer like me admired Shakespeare for his abilities as a poet, playwright, and life coach who understood the value of effective communication. In "Romeo and Juliet," communication problems led to tragedy since he didn't realize the poison was phony. JL has miscommunication problems with her father .She didn't tell her father that she didn't PUSH her stepmom. .The father was also at fault for he didn't ask why did she push her stepmom? Specific asking will get you what you're looking for and specific answering will get you off the hook.

The value of support, whether it comes from friends, family, or immaterial possessions like money or power, is another lesson imparted by Shakespeare as life coach. Like Caliban in "The Tempest," support is the magic that will make everything work.Due to her lack of support from her family and the Ye family, her maternal family, JL was sent to ZennyHall.She mistook her stepmother and father for someone who loved her more, so she angrily shoved the Ye family away when they came for her. JL burned her bridges. The FL(/XFF) on the otherhand, when she took over the identity of the dead JL got the the help of Mdm. Liu, JL mother's friend and the ML (the emperor's strong right hand because he was modeled after the Black Prince, the formidable, extremely competent warrior heir to "Edward III"), she left Zenny Hall. Initially she make Tong,JL,'s maid her strong supporter whom she treated like a younger sister.She build bridges within the family with no outward display of hostility towards people who don't like her, the half sister, female cousin,and stepmother whist,getting in good books with the father, uncles,aunts, male cousin and grandmother.Sought out to the Ye. the estranged JL's maternal family and help with their problems,get assisstance of the ML when needed, build a circle of friends and not enemies for even her spurned blind date became her accomplice! For without support its walking through life on bare feet.

Interestingly, despite being a vengeance drama, this one will remain one of my favorites since I discovered the formulaic phrase "petty and pathetic," which I will use as a daily habit for forgiveness and letting go.When someone wrongs or anger you, you always want to be ahead of them like Octavius/Augustus Caesar of “Anthony and Cleapatra”.Hence when I read haters, antis or rude comments, they are wallowing in pettiness and being pathetic for I 'm moving forward as its difficult to help those who don't want to help themselves.

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100% MUST watch. The thriller of watching their relationship go from estranged/calculating to caring/protecting is such a good ride. Their chemistry is out of this world. The visuals in this drama too. ughhh... they're all so good. The plot is very C-drama-like, although it does provide twists and turns that make it exciting and fresh to watch. Both lead actors did a phenomenal job, I could feel the tension between the main leads. Something new was the multiple rain scenes/fight scenes in this drama. Some parts did feel slightly rushed, but it is understandable since they are on a time crunch. This drama was filmed beautifully, and the chemistry was boiling!!! Definitely belongs in the top 5 C-dramas of this year. Highly recommend watching.

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This is the kind of drama I will probably fall asleep thinking of.

I liked the slow burnt and that the female lead could Do anything for revenge. I like the cast, some of them are my favorite. Princess Wanning is not Who knows what villain but at least shes cruel, tho shes only broken.


The Main leads have chemistry and the clothing is nice.

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Excellent adaptation with solid performance

Having read the source material, I think the show delivered the revenge extremely well. It was also refreshing to see the both main and supporting characters worked in tandem to deliver a stunning visual experience through out the show. Wu Jin Yan has delivered stellar performance in an intense, vengeful role as expected but the actors who played the princess and Ji Shuran matched the leads' energy (and in some scenes did much better). The only aspect I found misaligning was the whole replace reincarnation with substitution part (of course censorship rules) as it required extra scenes/work to convince audience and the the characters with the narration. However compared to many of its predecessors (such as Princess Wei Yong) this show handled those challenges extremely well and made sure that the FL stayed true to her vengeful character. Wang Xing Xue as cunning Duke Su was such a refreshing and intriguing watch as the actor clearly delivered such an unusual role compared to his otherwise mellow characters. Overall great one time watch.

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Probably one of the best drama I've seen

There are so many good things about this drama. Like every drama, there are some flaws, but this drama is still amazing.

1) The acting :
- The leads were amazing, their acting was top notch and we could feel the emotions.
- I think the acting was awesome from everyone, the side characters and the villains did a really good job. Shen Yu Rong, as much as we hate this guy, the actor was great, the princess too.

2) The leads :
- The chemistry was fire, we could feel it from their first encounter
- One of my favorites leads ever : Strong, intelligent and bad ass. I love them so much
- ML was handsome as hell, I love his character and his charisma. He was a cold character, but never an asshole to FL. I love how he was being proud and watching her when she was being badass. He helped her when needed.
- FL : Beautiful, smart, she deserved the world after what she went through.
- Their relationship : I absolutely loved the evolution of their relationship and the romance. I'm not a fan of slow burn, so I would have liked more scenes of them and maybe them getting together a few eps sooner, but it was done well. And we still knew they already liked each other. All their scenes were so good, the chemistry, the tension, the love. All the little details too and symbolism with some of the scenes. I love how they slowly opened up to each other, trusting each other, helping each other and working together. They are truly soulmate and perfect for each other. I also liked how they can be themself when they are for each other. Also, as much as ML was wiped, he didn't become a stupid guy in love. At some point, I wish we would see more ML, he wasn't that present in the first half, but I get it the story is more centered on FL and we got to see more of him later. We didn't get much kiss and skinship, but the handholding and hugs made me giggle and happy. Their hugs always looks so comforting. They loved each other very much and we could feel like with every looks and moments. The wedding made me smile, I wish it was longer and that we could have really scene the wedding and not just the wedding night. I would have loved to see her family, his grandpa, friends, etc... But anyway, we can't get everything. No misunderstanding, no annoying conflicts between them too. A mature relationship.

3) The friendship :
we saw a few friendship through the drama and I enjoyed it.
- The group of 4 with FL + Ye Shi Jie + Jiang Jing Rui + Liu Xu : I loved their friendship at the academy and that it stayed till the end. They help and supported each other, a true friendship that also brought us laughs.
- ML and the emperor : I really loved this friendship. It was good that they also showed us flashbacks of them as kids to understand more their backgrounds and the foundation of their friendship. Trust, loyalty and working together till the end. The little like handshake made me emotional. They love each other like brothers. The emperor was truly lucky to have him.
- FL and Tong Er : Tong Er was so sweet and kind, she deserved better :( I loved this duo and how they became friends and then like sisters. She gave up her life saving FL, we saw in that scene how much they loved each other and they were like sisters.
- FL and Jiang Li : we didn't see much, but we could still see the care they had for each other, how she helped FL and how FL dedicated herself to avenged her
ML and his 2 sidekicks : I'm sill sad that they both died at the end. I loved this trio, they gave us funny moments, bad ass moments, I loved how they worked together.

4) Family :
- Jiang family : even though it wasn't her real family, FL still found a family in them I would say. Like in the last ep, when she was talking with him when they talked about her not being Jiang Li or when she called him father at the end with teary eyes and told him to dress up not to catch a cold. I feel like she actually considered him as a father figure. And with grandma, I loved their relationship and grandma in general. The cousin was the best. After his first appearance, I thought he was annoying, but he became such a good character. It was great how he was always on her side and defending her. Just like his parents actually, I loved them too. Like during the exorcism episode, the 3 of them stayed on FL's side, tried to help her and save her. They were never bad to her. It was nice the last greeting from FL at the end. The father, he did bad Jiang Li because he was blind by his love for the step mom and a bad father, kinda weak but he had his moments. I loved him in the last episodes, I loved his loyalty to the emperor and how he stepped up to help him. Also, even though he probably knew long ago she wasn't his daughter (we could say it was not to lose face and for the family's reputation), he still helped her and I actually think he cared for her for real. It was hilarious his face after she was saved by ML grandfather, ML getting her out of the horse and them hugging. I watched that scenes multiples times. I almost cried with his reaction in the last ep when he was talking to FL about the real Jiang Li. His reaction was sad, he wronged her, but he truly loved her and he will regret it for the rest of his life. The step sister, she was annoying, but she got some character development, I was glad when she finally stepped up to her mom and now that she's free from her, I think she will probably be a better person. Also from the little comments at the end about her, I have hope.
- Ye family : I loved this family, they were the best. I loved how they were kind and they didn't hesitate to help FL. Their dynamic was funny and we could see they love each other. Ye Shi Jie was a good friend and ''brother''. I liked how he didn't become the obsessed and annoying SML, he loved FL, but he didn't forced her or become over the top or chasing her. He helped her and supported her. He knew he had no chance to, it was good at the end when he said he would be like an older brother. 8 years later, they are working together and their friendship must still be strong.
- ML's family : It was tragic to see his parents fate, I felt that. I loved grandpa and I was really happy when they reconciled and I enjoyed their scenes together, the one with FL too. I giggle so bad when she said to him that she was ML's lover ;) he was good and he accepted her instantly as his granddaughter-in-law, he also knew they were a perfect match ;) it was awesome when he appeared and said he would save her. Adding his character at the end was a good chose for me.
- FL's family : They suffered so much, her brother and father are such good people, I'm glad they got justice and that they were alive. The little reunions were emotional. I loved every little scenes, but I wish we would have seen more. The number of eps is limited, but I would have definitely loved to see at least one scene of ML with them (like the 4 of them) or just him talking with her father. But it was good at the end when he said she chose a good man and he was happy for her. It was also funny that one scene with ML and FL's brother. When the father said she had a good eye for choosing a man, I'm sorry but I laughed, I just kept thinking how she chose Shen Yu rong in the past.

5) The plot :
- I think the plot was well written. The plot was engaging.
- Not going to lie, at some point I fast-forwards a little some scenes when it was just talking, I don't think I missed anything important.
- I feel like maybe it dragged a bit too long the revenge against the step mom for Jiang Li.
- The last few episodes were keeping me on the edge of my seat. When I binge watched like the last 4 eps, I was stressing and totally attentive.
- The fighting scenes were well done
- The final battle : I think it was good, it happened a bit fast, but I loved it. The strategies to save the emperor, the fighting scenes, FL speech, everyone doing their parts. Princess coming to help. I was satisfied when ML finally killed the Chen guy.
- I loved that ML recognized her at the very beginning
- I think it's a good change from the novel the fact that she didn't had Jiang Li's face.
- It was good that we could see both of the leads getting their revenge.
- Everything happened fast at the end and feel like it could have had more eps for this plot, but probably because of the regulation of max 40 eps, the plot had to happened more fast.
- I respected the consort at the end. She really cared about the emperor, I was proud of her courage and sacrificed. She didn't hesitated to stay at the banquet and to killed herself for the emperor.
- Revenge : I would say I'm satisfied. The Li family and Shen family got what they deserved. The step mom, okay. Chen guy, the death he deserved. The princess, she was bad, selfish and did many bad things. I think her ending was good, I even felt a bit bad for her, she loved Shen Yu Rong so much, but it brought her to her dismissed. I feel her, she was assaulted and suffered a lot, but that's no excuse for what she did. But I would say, I feel like it was interesting when they showed that she killed their father. Shen Yu rong, I think his death was too easy and ''peaceful'', but anyway at least he's dead.
- The maids were annoying, but it added some comedy and they weren't there long.
- The princess from the other country annoyed me for most of her screentime, but she was useful at the end. She was pretty childish, like girl he doesn't like you, move on and be mature about the situation.

6) Beautiful cinematography

7) Beautiful costume and makeup
- I think it was really pretty the pearls

8) Beautiful ost, I love it so much

9) Ending :
- I was pissed at first when I learned about the ending scene without having watched it, but It wasn't bad after all. After some thinking, we still had some moment in ep 40, the wedding and some scenes of them happy before him going to war. So I accepted it. I would have loved to see them hug, don't know why they didn't give us that, but we know they reunited and that he is still alive. I love how he said he would come back when flowers blooms and he did. Cdramas writers love these ending, the leads reunited for a few secs or just looking at each other from afar. Don't know why, it's such shitty endings ahah. Also it's Youku, I wasn't really hopeful, even if with Blossom in Adversity I did they did pretty good to give a satisfying ending that wasn't too short.
- The extra 5 min after marriage, that was cute. Their daughter is adorable
- I think it was pretty good the closure at the end. ML with his grandfather. FL with the Jiang family and her talk with the father. It was cute to see that they got together after all, the cousin and their friend.
- They could have not done the other battle at the end, not have ML leave and just show us happy moment. All of that seems a bit rushed also. But after some thinking again, it makes sense... Like of course after the Chen guy is gone (he was guarding with the army for years the border) the enemies would attack, I think plot wise it make sense. But again, since the plot had to end at ep 40, the rushness was inevitable

So, to conclude, I recommend this drama. It's a good watch, with awesome characters and story that get you hook.

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actually not bad ,i still enjoy the cut scene until ep 8 , but after that little by little cutting scenes, important scenes are not shown, unimportant scenes are showing,and the the last eps really really unnecessary, and rush , there is still a lot of duration left, but it is spent with unimportant scenes, shooting the scenery, and the ending makes in extra eps, I so hate that style of c drama

the number of episodes is 40+ extra eps, with different durations, some episode is only 46 minutes with opening and ending, but there are also 55 57 59 minutes, if divided into an average of ±50 minutes per eps


for the ost is good, i once hear music of "镜花水月" from dramamaiden holmes" because the singer also sing the ost in this drama


and about the acting, not bad that i think, WJY in this drama her acting not all is feel disgusting (sorry) ，It's OK when she cry silently, but not when she's crying + screaming or ,There are times when her smile is very fake, not natural that just feels very fake and a bit cheesy

and about WXY acting ,its ok and cool but the last eps his giggle is really over for her cool character, especially at that time the conditions were not very suitable for giggling like that. a little stupid smile + stunned is enough.

about princess wanning hmm ,from From the first i thought she is so so so bad ,but after that i feel bad for her , from the start he was just a victim who became a mental victim and became a victim again,



Also, I really don't understand their plans and conversations. They used metaphors, and I knew the meaning of each word, but I couldn't understand the sentence of their conversations, drain my brain,,and he said she do what he want she do ,but what i see is ,she do what she want to do ,he just help her to do that?! and he said its his plan? she never do anything for his plan at first ,she just do what she want and he want it too...

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High quality acting & screenplay

The way it was written, the lines and the flow of the story is high quality. But because there is too much going on I have to stop watching it sometimes. It eas overwhelminh for me but I had a lot of emotions watching it, crying, laughing and giggling. There was little romance it was subtle but the chemistry is top notch drspite the age gap. I used to want more romance in a series but I did not notice that there was little romance in the whole series. Their eyes speaks a lot of emotions I cant even hate the villains in this story because their villain arc is justifiable.

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GO WATCH THIS DRAMA!!!!

I do really really love this ancient drama.
I'm not a fan of a ancient drama but the production team, the writer made it soooooo beautifully.
Cast acting is superb..the plot is so wonderfull.
In the first episode, i thought it a little bit cliche when the female lead borrow her life saviour identity..but thats why this drama title is The Double right?!
After that, i love all of the plot.
I love how FL well planned her revenge, and how she very determined with her goal.
I like when she knows that she wouldn't make it alone, she go for a help..and ofc she ask the duke.
The Duke as like all ML, always came when it needed. As a ML, he has a childhood trauma,.but he really annoying yet playfull ML.
A mild yet beautifully romance between FL and The Duke was well written, how they banter, how they flirt, when to holding hand, when to kiss..its well prepared.
And the ending..although in the last episode we only saw a man bring a fox pendant, meet with the FL, a little OE..but i read in china's forum that there's special episode when FL and ML talk with their daughter about their story.
The most annoying thing in this drama is FL's right hand maiden and ML's right and left hand man all died!!
Why you killed them writernim?!!

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