The Double

You have seen my love, It's time for my vengeance and justice to be served..

The Double is a fantastic drama to watch in the first half of 2024. It's entertaining enough to keep you hooked to it. It did justice to the thriller and revenge genre.

🍁OVERVIEW OF PLOT:-

The Double tells the tale of the lady who was betrayed by her love and buried alive with a ruined reputation, Xue Fangfei. The man she gave her all betrayed her in the hard times for some despicable excuses. She crawled out her grave and assumed the identity of second daughter of Jiang Family to take her revenge and seek justice for herself and the real Jiang Li.

🍁KEY CHARACTERS:-

🌿Xue Fangfei/Jiang Li (Wu Jin Yan) :- The daughter of Magistrate Xue, Xue Fangfei renowned as the most talented lady in the capital. She is also known with two other names, Xue Li and A'Li. She fell in love and married a poor scholar Shen Yu Rong. She loved him wholeheartedly and supported him with all she has. Yet, her love was betrayed, her reputation was ruined, she was tortured and her hope was scattered. Despite her innocence she was buried alive, abandoned in that cold place alone by her beloved husband without giving her the reason for not trusting her, without giving her the reason of all her sufferings, without giving her the reason of the betrayal of her unconditional love.

🌿Xiao Heng/Duke Su (Wang Xing Yue) :- Duke Su, the right hand man of Emperor of Great Yan, an incredible chess master who plots and never let his enemy upper hand. An adaptive strategist and never failed to hit the bull's eye.

🌿Shen Yu Rong (Liang Yong Qi) :- The ex-husband of Xue Fangfei and the lover of Princess Wan Ning. A poor scholar who pave his path of becoming an official in court with his hardwork to prevail justice. However, he couldn't be untouched by the temptation of power. He is a person who never take responsibility for his own actions and loves to play victim card.

🌿Princess Wan Ning (Li Meng) :- A psycho lady whose obsession is Shen Yu Rong, the husband of another lady. She loves to toy with people, torture them for fun and take advantage of her position.

🍁MY IMPRESSIONS:-

The captivating plot of 'The Double' made me to not blink while I was watching. It's one of the favourite genre of mine. However, I was skeptical at first because I was not familiar with the cast, except one or two, but decided to give it a try because I have faith in Youku. The first few episodes made me to binge watch 25 episodes in just 3 days. The drama starts with dark theme, and switching between the dark and light. The suspenseful and emotional rollercoaster plot mainly revolves around the female lead. The Double is focused on the revenge and it wouldn't be wrong to say that this is one of the few dramas which is more focused on females be it female lead or other female characters. The drama conveys the struggle and pain of women and their cruelty, their desire of love and wrath of hatred, their wish to live a peaceful life and obsession.

The drama is paced well, neither slow nor fast. The plot is fantastic however it is not free from holes. Sometimes there are loopholes that are visible even with eyes closed and made me question the logic. I won't get into details about it, you'll know when you watch it.

Xue Fangfei, our female lead, is smart and capable of holding the sky if any trouble befalls her or her loved ones with her unparalleled intelligence. Not the typical female lead who always needs a man to get her out of trouble. She can be a pawn or the chess master to get her way. She can be a part of other's game and can even play her own game making the chess masters into her own pawn. In this journey of revenge and justice A'Li found her soulmate. The title of the drama suits her the best. Duke Su offers his support only when A'Li is unable to play her game because of her not holding some high position in the court.

The drama falls in the category of slow-burn romance but the chemistry hits the top. Duke Su and A'Li are a match made in heaven. Though it's a slow-burn but it doesn't feel like one, except there is less skinship. I can even watch 20 more episodes with that chemistry. Both are intelligent and responsible. With their smartness they continuosly tried to outsmart eachother, supported eachother and they didn't realise among this all, they started to fell for each other. Duke Su didn't know exactly when A'Li started to become the special one in his heart from the pawn in his chess. Similarly, A'Li didn't get the clue since when Duke Su started to heal the wound of her heart. I loved how their love progressed. Finding a man like Duke Su after being betrayed by Shen Yurong is such a blessing for A'Li. Likewise, finding a true match in opposite gender whose intelligence is at par with him is fate for Xiao Heng.

Let's talk about the villains. Their backstory is quite pitiful but still they all are despicable that I have no sympathy for them. The karma served them right. Among them the most despicable one is Shen Yurong. He is sleek and coward person, never takes responsibility for his deeds and shifts blame on others. He is pretty good at self-pity and playing the victim card. He gets the love of two women but he chose to betray both of them for one another, thereby losing them both at the end of the day. Princess Wanning did everything for her obsession with Shen Yurong but still in the end she lost him and the worst was being betrayed by him. She got the taste of her own medicine. She wanted to make Shen Yurong like her and he succeeded in becoming like her, obsessed with power and person whom he claims to love. They also are a good match for each other. Now coming to the stepmom of Jiang Li, Ji Shuran. I think she had it easy, her retribution wasn't that well done. The people died because of her must still be feeling injustice.

The acting delivered by the cast is truly spectacular specially from Wu Jin Yan and Liang Yong Qi then comes our Wang Xing Yue and Li Meng not much behind them. Wu Jin Yan made me cry with her many times. She delivered top notch emotions when confronting Shen Yu Rong every time and chemistry with Xiao Heng. Liang Yong Qi portrayed the conflicted emotions of Shen Yurong perfectly. The regret of hurting A'Li but never admitting his choice, the obsession with her yet claiming to be innocent, all are greatly portrayed by him. Wang Xing Yue played Xiao Heng with that dark and dangerous vibes which goes perfectly with this character. The stepmother (Chen Chiao An) also did amazing.

The most useless character was Jiang Yuan Bai, the man can't even handle his own family matters justly yet he is prime minister and handling country affairs. Indeed, he was a good prime minister but he failed as a husband and father. His retribution served him right, living his rest of life in regret and grief.

I loved the friendship of Emperor Zhao Ye and Duke Su Xiao Heng. It's s rare to see an emperor to have a best friend. Apart from A'Li and Xiao Heng, Wen Ji and Lu Ji remained my favourites from starting to end.

Though the story is well paced and well developed but still there is the Ye family arc which I feel like dragged for too long and the drama tried to shift towards the lightness and characters became overly righteous which I don't like much. I loved the dark heavy theme. There are also some unnecessary deaths (I won't spoil who died but I bawled my eyes out for them) and plots which doesn't make sense but I watched it for the entertainment's sake without getting into logic. Duke Su get quite less screen time which is also a complain from me. We mostly saw him plotting behind the scenes and being told that it's done by Duke Su and all. It would been better if his screen time was increased and we get to see him more.

🍁CONCLUSION:-

This drama unexpectedly did beautiful job by making audience not to take their eyes off the screen. The acting to chemistry was all great. OSTs are good and costumes are beautiful for females. In males only our male lead got a good wardrobe. If we ignore the plotholes and go with the flow it's definitely fabulous. There is happy ending with a special episode so I'm not disappointed with the ending but yes not really satisfied.
A must watch from me.
Highly recommend.

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Revenge, dragged through the mud, Xiao Heng, potentially 2024's hottest stud--

First of all, I deeply apologize for the little piece of poetry that you had to read just now. I promise I'm sober as I'm writing this.

Right when I thought (personal opinion) 2024 is turning up a bit dry compared to last year in terms of c-dramas, The Double came blazing though that barren field (personal opinion) with smoke and mirrors because I didn't even know about its existence until people began to talk about it upon its premiere.

Truthfully, for the first 20 episodes, I treated this drama like my topmost obsession. Equally clever (and sexy af) main leads with explosive chemistry and slow-burn romance? Check. A boiling hot yet calculative revenge against tremendously evil individuals? Check. Goosebumps-inducing soundtracks with gorgeous cinematography? Also, check. It seemed like the drama had pretty much everything going well for it. I loved the atmosphere, the revenge that was brewing slowly but surely and most of all-- I was all knee-deep and beyond thrilled for the romance to ACTUALLY happen because the sexual tension between the leads, in contrary to what prejudices and biased thoughts people tend to have towards actors who have a 5+ years age-gap, was nothing short of HAWT.

But, all of that was-- like I'd mentioned-- were my thoughts for the first 20-30 episodes. Although I knew it was still heavily flawed with moments of unnecessary off-putting humor that didn't exactly do what it was probably supposed to do, a filler-y story arc or two on which a good number of episodes were wasted on and a bunch of nonsensical stuff-- I still enjoyed it mostly for what it was. Until after episode 30, when I began to become a bit... tired of it?

By the moment they reached the climax of the long-planned revenge, I guess I'd lost my patience. I couldn't care less about how it would end for the antagonists because when you push the suspense too hard, it tends to crack. In this case, it definitely cracked. At least, for me. Plot becoming dry and draggy due to too many episodes is a common issue among Chinese dramas, and unfortunately, The Double is no exception. I feel like it would've benefitted greatly if they excluded a couple parts of the whole show that didn't necessarily need to be there.

Fine. Besides my faltering enjoyment for this drama towards the end of its run, I still think this drama was pure mindless entertainment. Very over-the-top, very soap opera, too convenient. If you pull out your brain plug by a bit, you'll find it entertaining too. Also, a quick little appreciation for the acting from pretty much the entire cast of this drama. Like, I can't even bring out a particular actor's name to praise them separately because I thought everyone equally gave their all into this. They served like their rent was DUE. The fantastic OSTs gave each scene that extra impact and spice, while the visually pleasing cinematography that well-utilized the characters' clothing, hair, accessories and the set designs brought everything together. The budget of production wasn't high, but they don't let you notice that. Kudos to that.

IN CONCLUSION, despite of the heavy flaws that make this drama far FAR from being the masterpiece it was actually never supposed to be, it's still highly entertaining for most of it. Imperfect drama, but PERFECT for a one-time watch ^^

Last but not least... You and your stylish array of hand fans will always be famous, Xiao Heng/Duke Su.

*SPOILER SPOILER*
That last episode was full of shit lmaoooo

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Typical revenge drama but very enjoyable!

The recycled revenge drama script continues to be the trend. It's one of the better ones though at as the production quality is very nice. It gives off a darker vibe with vibrant colors. Make up / costume design especially unique. Lots more dark reds right down to the makeup & wardrobe of the ML. Compared to a similar drama like Story of Kunning Palace I think this drama did a better job in terms of storytelling, casting, & production. So even if the script is nothing new, and lots of unbelievable scenes, it's still a great watch!

FL/ML pairing works nicely IMO. Both are equally mysterious and calculating. The acting's convincing especially the FL's crying scenes.
FL : I am not familiar with her prior works, but dancer background brings that special grace that non dancer background actors can't fake.
ML: I watched some of his prior works and he can act but in terms of characters, this character is the most interesting thus far
Killer Ex husband: His acting is outstanding. Character is more complex than the ML.

Slow romance:
Their encounters were not overly forced, and the development of the relationship is slowly brewing which I am enjoying. Ep 9 on the leads finally starts to have more interactions. The chemistry becomes more evident in ep 11!

Ending..... UGHHHH honestly the last episode was NOT needed. Did they REALLY need to send ML away for yet another battle? Really could've ended before that.

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A solid tale of revenge and new beginnings

~~~~ Contains very light spoilers, so read at your own risk ~~~~

Another great Chinese drama of 2024 for the books. I contemplated giving it a nine, but there were some parts that I found slow or I found myself more on my phone than actually paying attention. Despite this, I was emotionally invested in the characters and never thought that they hung up on one conflict for too long. Towards the end, I was afraid there was too much to resolve in a short amount of time, but I was pleasantly surprised at how well it wrapped up. However, I didn't particularly like the slightly ambiguous ending with the couple.

Pros:
~ Chemistry: The slow-burn romance between the main characters was so fun and interesting to watch. Although it may have been a bit too slow in some aspects. But the main focus of the show was not really the romance, but the mystery and the revenge. I strongly disagree with those who said there was no chemistry, I felt it right from the start and it even got better later on. The physical tension between them hit all the right notes.

~ The hidden identity: The plotline involving the female lead's hidden identity was particularly my favorite part of the story. I do think the resolution for this part was a bit lackluster considering it was the main point of the show. I was expecting a bigger reaction then she got, such as getting in trouble by the king for lying to him or her family getting angry with her. But I was always on the edge of my seat whenever her identity was about to be revealed and when she interacted with her ex-husband.

~ Fight scenes. I was impressed by how well the fight sequences were done. It looked real especially during the war and final episodes. The only minor flaw was the blood, which sometimes dyed the characters' skin and clothing pink, but the blood splattering effects were super cool.

~ Music. I was pleasantly surprised to hear Chenle in the ending song but the opening was pretty to listen too also. No surprise because Chinese OST’s are almost always amazing.

~ Angst. I enjoy angst, and this drama was heavy on it. It was portrayed well, but it might not be everyone's cup of tea. At times, it was a bit too dramatic and extra. The drama could pass as a soap-opera, especially in the beginning. Another problem was that Jiang Li was killed off so soon she barely interacted with the FL. Her reaction to Jiang Li's death and how much she cried for her in the future was not very realistic.


Cons:
~ Missed chances. When it came to the romance, there were times when I felt the writers missed out on some cute interactions or tropes. Sometimes I thought something would happen between them and then I would be disappointed that it didn't happen. It might be because of Duke Su's personality, as he's more of an observer than a doer, but still, there were so many opportunities for them to interact in a more physical sense rather than just staring at each other for hours.

~ The trauma dumping. I found it annoying how often the female lead cried and repeatedly shared her story of betrayal. Despite being highly intelligent, there were moments when she seemed helpless and whiney. Her personality seemed to change at moments like that. An example would be when Duke Su shared his story about how his dad might have been killed unjustly, and instead of cheering him up or something, she tried to one up his trauma by ranting about hers… At least it felt like that to me.

~ Fillers. Fillers are destined to be in a drama with such lengths, but I lost interest during her trip to her family and the mother with her shenanigans. Also on that note what’s with everyone going crazy whenever something happens to them? Three different people went off the rails… Anyway, The first and last 10 episodes definitely improved my overall rating, I was so excited for the drama after watching the first episode.


I recommend this drama for those who enjoy angst and a very slow-burn romance. The cast and acting were outstanding. The plot had its flaws but it was enjoyable for the most part.

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And maybe I'll pretend I never saw the end(last 2 eps) !

A note to myself - enjoy while it lasts ...not everything has to have a perfect ending !

So the much awaited journey comes to an end and it was pretty much a train wreck but as much as I loved this show, that deeply it has inflicted upon me that endings are often not that beautiful as the journey ! This review is for those who appreciate a critical examination of art, even if it means challenging their favorites. For those who might struggle with differing viewpoints, perhaps a lighter genre would be more enjoyable right now.

So the show is about the most illogical things of all time - someone pretending to be someone else for revenge and that too in front of a whole fucking town and they buy it ! and so will you ! I promise you will !
As nonsensical as it sounds that's what it is -- but let me sing to the glory of this show -

Top notch Aesthetics that scream oh you need to stare at it again ! - How they use clothes - they have given a new meaning to it and it's no more just props it's got life !
The amazing portrayal of women -- oh man the cameraman gave them wings !!
Chemistry that gives you butterflies ! -they stare at each other and you go crazy toppling and turning on your bed !
Villains that make you loathe them - curse them you'll wany to kill them without a thought -- but they have great backstories and motivations for the things they did - disgustingly good as can be said.
The characters the props - you'll love everything about it down to the details - as we take up on each and everything one by one you'll love it more with each ep until you won't be able to forgive the makers for what they do to you --

Let's talk about our very hot "ALL TALK NO SHOW" most charming gege who loves "side eyes" and "taking a seat" every time we fucking hope for him to flip a fan at the very least but i think fan was just the most charming prop who's master never got around delivering to his potential !
Look first thing he waited till the water went above the head and when my patience was taking last breaths -- our poison princess fought better than Duke Su! (yes I said it ) !
I mean what was that fight even (with king's brother)- like for a min atleast I wanted to see that strong man I had been dreaming of - ERROR 404 - NOT FOUND !

My dearest assistants of duke su I am sorry the writers and makers did that to you ! you two deserve all my love for never disappointing me... man I am so mad to even feel bad -- they were too good to just die of random arrows ! Imma pretend they still alive and they be asking - my lord are you going to or should i do it !

i mean to think about it SYR and XFF spend more time together than Duke Su and Li or should say XFF spends more time in SYR's arms in the last eps than duke su in all the eps combined ! SFUODSBLBVJNDFLXN!
and that candle light kiss -- oh my out of the world cinematography I love how you make me hate a candle!

And don't remind me of that king pls - what in the tomfoolery was that person - to protect him who does nothing exactly in the show we have so many people sacrificing ! I mean that consort li has a better role than him and for fucks sake she did die amazingly oh brave women !
and not to mention even the maids and gardener's have more role than him - i wanted to say curtains too but then you'd just say I was being mean and wouldn't believe me !

Lets talk about the best of the lot -- Wanning there you girl - you shattered my heart into pieces you deserved every bit of torture but it was not for you to die like this and make me love you ! - the best end served !

Now my girl A Li - my double edged sword my heart breaks for everything you have suffered and I am so proud of everything you have done -- tho your humor was not my taste but your strategy was until you began your patriotic speech in the middle of a war ! making the show all more miserable ! - I love how you think of JL and the dead girl pops up from her grave I believe you even then but you tell me how am I to buy it that you shoot SYR twice in front of a whole army that is under SYR's command who's job is to protect him -? i mean that's what I think the seal means - or was i just delusional ?

Let me not go around rubbing salt on your wounds with poor Tong Er dying to serve no purpose and that absolute insane of dance , what was that even... not to mention they don't even look at the direction of voice coming from - let alone how they mimic a kid and the way to find if a person is possessed or not is a debate between that person and that monk !

ps . If I have to go on nitpicking on everything in the name of logic I should stfu and not watch dramas - there, said it for you. !

but again as much as I love how wanning's arc ended ..I hate how other characters were treated -And the thing is that the deeds of the dead are not going to speak from the grave ...why was anything not handled officially but then again the king was for tomfoolery !

and tho I hate to admit I must say ---
I LOVED IT TO EVERY BIT DOWN !

AND I HOPE A LOT MORE DRAMAS LIKE THIS ARE MADE !!!

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entertaining enough to pass the time but unworthy of ever being called 'good'

listen y'all..... when i heard that this was a new project by the same director as 'go princess go' i knew i HAD to watch it. the king of camp, and one of the only c-dramas i've seen with explicitly clear queer and trans themes, it was one of my favorites. unfortunately, his characteristic style choices such as dramatic slow mo fabric waving in the wind with falling petals and zoomed in close up shots of the main leads... as well as the stupid goofy campy humor that carried over was NOT enough to make this drama good.

plot is very entertaining, enough to make you want to click next and just keep binging it, because things are constantly happening non stop. i would say the pace is really pretty fast, with one scheme/case after the next. however, i would say that the actual quality of the small arcs of schemes and plots are quite average. often recycled from other revenge/political court dramas, or unsatisfying in their conclusion or how they are solved. sometimes, they just show a quick montage and offer that as their only solution and i'm just supposed to believe that everything is cool and fine now?? esp the luyang silk poisoning case ending was extremely disappointing. a positive note i will give this show is that while the schemes are average and forgettable in quality, the actual longterm plot was simple, straightforward and didn't fall too far from the original set up. meaning that the ending wasn't completely wack and out of the realm of expectation, which is what i have come to expect now unfortunately, from c-dramas. the plot of woman is betrayed---> gets revenge is never lost, and the final ending for xue fangfei and shen yurong is satisfying. otherwise, the plot is ehh.... okay... there's definitely a lot of parts that if you thought about for even a second don't make sense, and there's a lot of meaningless scenes as well. sending xiao heng to battle at the end and killing his side kicks was completely unnecessary.... the story already ended!!! everyone's revenge is fulfilled!! why we gotta drag this out and create meaningless problems for the main leads??? because the only way they know to create conflict and tension is to separate them and have them yearn??????? stupid as hell.

the most disappointing part of this drama was the two main leads. while the plot moved quickly enough for me to stay focused on the show, characters will always be the soul and heart of a story. creating interesting and dynamic characters who make you FEEL something should be the priority of every screen writer.... or else how can you truly feel committed to a story? xue fangfei and xiao heng spend more time staring blankly, making meaningful eye contact, sitting backlit against a window, slowly walking by a wind fan and giving soft smiles than having any kind of deep character exploration. they are the main characters, and yet they are just hollow and empty shells with beautiful faces. it is incredibly clear that the primary motivations of the director was to make a Beautiful drama, rather than a good one. similarly, wu jinyan and wang xingyue's primary motivations were to look beautiful, rather than act. if that's the goal, they may as well have just made a really long music video or photoshoot that's been turned into a fan edit lmao. literally they are both so soulless and wooden with nothing behind the eyes.... and that is saying something because shen yurong also looked like that the entire drama but that was what we call ACTING!!!! it is clear that both wjy and wxy are just too afraid to emote too much for fear of looking ugly or scrunching up their faces too much, and neither of them are good enough at top tier idol micro expressions to properly convey the emotions in this drama. it's just a lot of raised eyebrows and slight lip trembling as one or two tears gently fall. just kind of looking constipated which gets exhausting after a while. tbh ive seen several wjy shows at this point and she really wasn't this bad in yanxi palace??? like i feel like back then she was more willing to make expressions and now she's become less and less able to act out of fear of looking ugly. i dont presume to understand the pressure that idol actors are under but i've seen plenty of idol shows at this point and it's v clear when the actors are still committed to ACTING.

ok but BACK to the characters.... both xff and xh grate on me because they are so blankly simple and good and incapable of ever making a real mistake. they are both beautiful, smart, powerful, good at everything, talented, etc. etc. etc. went through some kind of immense trauma and are dedicated to revenge, but would never hurt an innocent, etc....... like...... yeah they are good people, but does that make a good CHARACTER???? a character that is worth rooting for, has some bite to them, some complexity??? even just a shred??? i cant just root for someone because they are right and good, they also have to give me a reason to truly love them, to relate in some way, or some extra layers of complexity. xff is actually just a mary sue FR and xh is her beautiful empty flowerpot reward bf for her struggles. there is nothing of substance to their characters, nor is there any substance to their relationship. xff being so perfect only hits with people who enjoy the fantasy of 'what if i was beautiful and gorgeous and smart and talented and won at everything and got the hottest man too,' and for anyone w a modicum of taste it's just endlessly boring. like, everyone always accused wei yingluo from yanxi palace of being comically 10 steps ahead of her enemies in the game and being a mary sue w protagonist armor but like.... at least wei yingluo was also notably DIFFERENT from other cdrama leads. she was also violent and ruthless and would actually stop at nothing for her goals. because it was unusual, it was also refreshing and satisfying to see her leave no mercy for her enemies. she may have won every time but her character was flawed, and she had to LEARN kindness, empathy, and patience. xff is like her sad cardboard cousin who only looks good in a photoshoot and terrible in actual time based media. xh is even more of a joke, we are told that he is violent and ruthless and we NEVER see him get his hands dirty. only his subordinates. because xh is never personally torturing or abusing anyone, you get to continue the narrative that he is a good man, while also pulling girls in with his domineering and powerful character type. i would much rather contend with a xh who is actually cruel, violent and maybe makes us uncomfortable who has to learn how to solve his problems without violence, rather than one with no teeth who's just a perfect idol husband fantasy w a canned sad backstory. there is ONE scene where the emperor puts him under house arrest for 2 days and yells at him for being too impulsive and violent and that's ALL WE GET. and nothing even happens after that anyway! so blaaaahhhhh. meanwhile xff went through something so horrific, and instead of ever dealing with that trauma, she is just devoted to justice, and offers endless wisdom to the people around her. like... there isn't even an ounce of fear or distrust in her, when that would only be NATURAL for someone who went through what she did, would also make her more interesting, and her relationship w xh more difficult. their relationship was already built on him being the great and powerful audience far above a small pawn, so why should she trust that he won't sacrifice her to extend his own goals.... just like syr??? i'll admit that the fact that there was 0 conflict in their relationship, and only good things like mutual support, trust and respect etc. was refreshing to watch after seeing so many c-dramas fall to endless miscommunications and plot-information reveal led conflicts. but what i think people fail to realize, is that a couple having conflict is not bad writing..... a couple having BAD conflict is BAD WRITING. and when you just remove conflict entirely, you remove relationship complexity and development as well. it's literally just... xff does something.... danger happen aaaahh... xh flies in like tuxedo mask to save her and flies away... they have a chat and flirt a bit and have meaningful eye contact... scene ends with wind machine blowing and camera slowly shifts focus to like a flower or a tree in the foreground, repeat 300x until the end when they shyly admit they like each other. it's so funny that people say they have rly good chemistry... my friends i did not know good chemistry just meant sustained eye contact while a wind machine blows and they say a couple lines of witty dialogue at each other. nothing about their interactions w each other feel natural or real or easy and comfortable. I know it's not a romance drama so fine, i won't get too up in arms about it, it doesn't matter, but it never hurts to have a nicely written romance!!

can you believe that the characters i like best in the drama are jiang ruoyao, ji shuran, shen yurong and wanning????? because they were literally the only characters with ANY DEPTH TO THEM WHATSOEVER!!!!! (i guess jiang papa had some too, but he was never properly punished for his crimes lmao) even though it was poorly written for the most part and just straightforward, oh they had an abusive parent, or a hard upbringing, or some kind of trauma and that's why they suck :( like i can't even say that they were that well written, in particular ji shuran was the most bleh, but at least they had more going on than the main leads!!! wanning def made me feel the most, and easily she and syr had the better actors in the show. i was prepared to not really like her at first, but she grew on me, and i came to look forward to her and syr's scenes of emotional power struggle and manipulation because it was more interesting than whatever blank staring - gentle smiling xff and xh were doing. by the end they actually got me to feel real pity for wanning, which is an accomplishment for this show. in her, i could see a shadow of zhen huan zhuan's iconic villain, hua fei.... but just a shadow, because she could never measure up!!!! but it was specifically the simplicity of her truest wish, that was almost childlike and innocent, that kind of reminded me of hua fei. i wish she existed in the hands of better writers, because she did have some potential. i am so sick of c dramas w their perfect blank slate good people main characters!!!!! i too, like wanning, would like to drag them into a muddy puddle!!! sick of it!!!!! i may be an american, and used to the likes of our bad guy complex main characters in dramas but like, i'm not asking for walter white or bojack horseman or succession!!!! just like!!!!! something deeper than i am good and perfect and smart and without flaws!!!!! like at least give me a wei wuxian or a xiaoyao or a dongfang qingcang! it's just so irredeemably boring and cowardly to do this jfc.

anyway as much as i complain about the show's characters, a part of me also recognizes how pointless it is.... the main characters weren't characters, they were models here to serve a fantasy..... and that's all this show is!!! it was not meant to be well written, it was meant to be a 40 episode vanity photoshoot! that's all it ever was!! i know that and yet i still get frustrated when i see bad writing!!! but whatever. watch this is u want to numb ur brain and look at pretty people, or scroll on tiktok for several hours and watch fan edits for the same effect.

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A grand tribute ~ Scheming that's done magnificently! | Well served Justice.

"Don't be afraid of falling once and don't let that deter you. You have to forget about the pit and move on. No matter what, I am behind you." - Xue Huai Yuan

The above line from Xue Fang Fei's father truly has left a significant meaning to me. Although it was delivered to encourage XFF to never lose hope and keep the faith. I also felt comforted on behalf of her, because I know, as a viewer, that it somehow has a different meaning for her. It's a reminder and an advise that she should let go of her traumas and free herself of the chains that's keeping her caged in the past. That life is much more brighter and vibrant as long as she keeps on looking at the people who truly loves and cares for her.

Anyways, I want to officially start this review by saying that this story left me in great awe this year and most probably the drama with one of the best story line and character progression of all. I consider it so close to my heart that I want to take my time to carefully dissect the story by highlighting my most favorite elements about it. So, shall we start?

Story line - It was told without haste. I love that they took their time to show us all the crucial events that occured in the show. And despite having lots of scenes to show and address, they simply never took the liberty to magically skip through anything. They made sure that each important scenes are executed and shown in detailed way which also helps us viewers understand the story the best way possible. + The fact that they are able to incorporate a great amount of humorous and hilarious skits left and right made this show extra entertaining to watch. Also, I just wanna add up how crazily jam-packed and/or action-packed this dramas is. I myself was astounded on how skilled they're in deciding which scenes should make it to the final cut. No wasted episode at all!

Overall camera works, editing and all those related stuff - I'm speechless and too overwhelmed to even tell people how satisfied I am on how meticulously this drama was filmed and edited. They seriously got the best team out there. The transitions between scenes are smooth and flawless—well done! Not to mention how insanely indulging the camera angles, focus and choreohraphies are! Chef's Kiss! The camera position and direction are exemplary as it gives us a better and wider view of the horizon where the story is happening. Another thing I extremely love are the close up shots because it somehow made me feel like they're talking to me...like telling me words through their expressions. For some reason those shots expressed and conveyed their emotions clearly and precisely even better than them exchanging actual dialogues. Those are also my most favorite scenes of this drama. The main leads looking at one other without speaking as if they can read one another's mind felt so magical and endearing to me.

I also just want to mention how the cinematography and CGI was insane during the Qin competition. Like, Hell Yeah!! They gave me so much chills!! At one point it feels like I was watching a Xianxia drama all of a sudden which was mesmerizing and captivating all at the same time. What a performance they got there.

Chemistry and compatibility is Oozing! Something about the main leads has conquered and devoured this entire drama completely. I never expected them to be this charismatic, captivating and tempting all together. Their eye contacts are enough to melt my soul and awaken my romantic bones into life. They've got this chemistry and synergy that is rare for pairings to have. So I would say they have developed a mutual understanding and intangible connection that gives me this heart flattering feeling whenever I watch them. I guess they simply understand each other and has long found the secret recipe on how to make their chemistry work even when they're only giving us the bare minimum. Also, I love that they're not really lovey-dovey but are mature enough to understand and acknowledge their feelings for each other. And on Episode 33, their holding hands scene after XFF went out of the prison was such a mood. I myself was shock to see them being on that stage already even when they seem on guard of each other. Chess piece my ass Xiao Heng. Hahaha!

Ending was satisfying! I appreciate how everyone who the Main Leads seeks justice from got their own well deserved miserable ending and punishment. And although Lu Ji and Wen Ji died at the end, I am just glad that Xiao Heng didn't end up getting killed as well. I better watch the special episode right after writing this review.

Lastl, I personally want to thank the writer for the well deserved Happy ending of the Xue Family. I'm very grateful and is elated to see XFF spending her life in peace and harmony with her little family after all the mess Shen Yurong brought to their life.

"Living is the best revenge against your enemy." - Jiang Li (The real one)

Story - 10, I have nothing but praises and good words for this drama. The story was well written, progression was smooth and systematic and I immensely appreciate how the writer and producer avoided making such ludicrous plot twist and devices.

Acting/Cast - 10, Let's not talk about acting! Cause Heck!! They nailed, cemented and put up a statue of themselves in my head as one of the best in actors/actresses in terms of acting. Wu Jin Yan specially got me on my knees. She's overflowing with this indescribable force that will automatically hook you up to her acting performance. While Wang Xing Yue got me with his charming smile and stoic yet soft facial expressions. The supporting roles are the best too! Special mention to Ai Mi. Girl is on every drama I watched. A person who got good eyes and sense in choosing her projects.

Music - 10, Overall music choice are good. They're melodious and almost heavenly. Specially their main BGM! Their song placement is good and balanced as well. I never feel like it overshadowed or overlapped with any of the scenes it was used to.

Rewatch Value - 10, Solid 10. This is one of those dramas I will surely watch over and over again if only I have time to do so.

Overall - 10, Other people saying otherwise must either have personal beef against any of the casts or their taste is simply nasty bad. This drama deserved a higher rating and success, just to be very honest. Highly recommend!

IF you find my review helpful please let me know.

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Beautiful production!

This story was told very well from beginning to end. With the high production value, beautiful cinematography, OST and acting. This one will go down as one of the best of 2024.

The Bad

Not many negatives about this drama for me. I would only point out that there are some things that don’t necessarily follow logic and realism especially when it came to her family ignoring her identity but it’s a CDrama, I find most CDramas don’t follow logic and realism so it doesn’t lose many points with me. Also sometimes I didn’t like the constant close shots, it was a little over done, a few here and there would have sufficed.

The Good

The plot was well balanced with action, treachery, plotting, scheming, revenge, justice, and love. Everything was wrapped up nicely with a bow. All the highs and lows were satisfying and portrayed very well throughout. I also enjoyed each character throughout this story. The acting and portrayal of the 3 dimensional complex, morally gray characters makes this drama stand out from others. This drama was a slow burn but so much was happening that it didn’t matter. Plus the desire and passion the two main characters had for each other was done so well. Great on screen chemistry. I loved that they gave a proper end to their romance.

I highly recommend this drama. It may not be for everyone if you aren’t into slow burns but the revenge story definitely makes up for it.

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