One of the Best CDrama I’ve Watched
One of the best Chinese drama I have ever watched. I never got tired or annoyed with the leads. The high rating is 100% deserved. If you are wondering if you should watch it, just go ahead and do it. This is your sign!The chemistry between the main leads, phenomenal.
The story is amazing, so well done and everything flows so perfectly.
There are some differences in the novel (haven’t finished it yet) but they made everything make sense so it’s fine.
I only wish we got more couple time. Sometimes a drama can get boring if we see too much of the happy couple but with this pair I don’t think I’d get tired of them. Have they made the special available yet???
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Best Drama of 2024
This show has been nothing but amazing from start to finish ! I was not expecting a performance like this .First let me start off with the Music. I LOVE it ... It was so suspenseful I loved it. The Actors omg every did there part in the show . I am so grateful to them. The plot not predictable . Most shows that start off strong cannot keep the momentum going . This show was not a let down.
I love the customs the accessories are outstanding
shout out to the directors . The make up artist they did there thing when planning out this show .
I am in love with everything ,
Thanks for everything
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face slapping done right!
outside of the gorgeous osts and cinematography, i can't stress enough how much joy it gives me seeing a series adapt a female lead who can stick to revenge to the end while also punishing those who did her wrong. all the villains had the most satisfying ends.the stand out performances are definitely jiang li and wanning. the actress who played wanning is an incredible actress and to be able to evoke the audience to hate and sympathise with you is an affirmation of her acting prowess.
jiang li is a talent of her own, the amount of times i cried with her is uncountable. her determination and perseverance to end moved me and if there's one word i can describe her as is a chameleon. her ability to change and adapt her personality and mannerisms depending on who she was with blew me away. great actress
overall the drama is just *chefs kiss* the ending was downright tragic (yu zheng when i catch you) but i was able to placate myself with a bonus episode 😭
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This review may contain spoilers
A-MA-ZING
I am really new to watch Chinese dramas. ( You know nowadays Korean dramas… How can I say… not like old days) I guess I just have watched 6-7 Chinese dramas and I don’t prefer the history dramas.I am shocked when I started to watch this drama. I saw the poster and said why not…. Then I addicted and waited every day.
Women revenge is amazing. Everything is very smooth and flowing. Every time I said they couldn’t connect this part but they found the way.
Evils are really evils. They think everything they made everything. But FL isn’t angel. She thinks everything. Clever, brave and beautiful. She isn’t a princess. Doesnt wait for rescue.
If you ask me which evil is the best sayko my answer is Shen. I really want to kill him. In the beginning he is just pushover. but in the end most hating character he is. I can understand the princess. she wants to loving and loved. but Shen is shameless and sneaky. Duke Su should punch him at one before ep 35. How he can dare to married again with FL. at the end he still thinks he made one mistake. Dude you kill your wife, make crazy her dad and put the jail her brother with princess. Then try to married again your wife who is kill by yourself. do you really think it is just one mistake.
And Duke Su. Before ep 20 he wasn’t around but he always watched FL. He is man but doesn’t walk around I am man and I have to do everything. He waited to FL can take her own revenge.
I really sorry about Tong . she is so lovely. I was shocked when she was died. Also why Duke Su’s mans died in the end? don’t be so deamatic give us happy ending for everyone . They are good guys.
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Oh dear Fan, my unsung hero ??
I can’t believe I’m just writing my review now although I have completed this drama weeks ago.Anyways
Ah Li, the FL you are ❤️❤️❤️ (perfection I tell you)
Duke Su, the ML you are 😻😍🥰 (that voice with such quiet strength and deep vocalization, i didn’t think it was possible but i just entered my cougar phase because of the ML, once again what a ML you are)
The Double, the series you are 🙌🙌🙌.
Oh not forgetting that fan, you are such a main character.
Finally finding a high value rewatch drama since Lighter & Princess.
Obviously I highly recommend
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Thrilling revenge drama, satisfying and addictive
If you are unsure about watching this drama, hopefully, this review will help you decide if it is worth your time.I can promise you that you will like it if you enjoy any of the following tags in a show:
-extremely intelligent strong female lead
-slow-burn romance
-revenge plotlines
-hidden identity
Here are a few of the main reasons I loved it so much and would rewatch it again in the future.
1. THE CHARACTERS:
The characters in this were amazing. I fell in love with all of them and for all different reasons. The female lead stayed consistent throughout the entirety of the drama. She remained in character, and her decisions remained consistent. She was extremely intelligent, calm, calculative, and cool-headed and solved things without the help of the male lead. She was very capable and often solved her own problems without having to resort to outside help.
The male lead was also a perfect match for her as he was also very calculative and cunning. I loved that the romance was slow-burn and realistic in its trajectory. It was not rushed, and you could see all the different moments in which the two main characters began relying on and trusting one another. The two leads were drawn to one another as they were both fascinated and stimulated by the other's intelligence. I loved that the male lead fully trusted and believed in the female lead's capabilities and didn't abandon reason to rush to her aide any time she was in trouble, as he fully had faith in her ability to overcome her obstacles. Their relationship was steady but firm, and they knew what the other was thinking or feeling without ever having to state it.
The antagonists in this were also well done as they were complex characters. I loved that they gave depth and backstories to all of the antagonists, making you feel pity for them or sympathize with them despite their terrible deeds. I loved that they delved into character development with her antagonist stepsister, in which the female lead guided her to find her own identity and think for herself, which helped her realize the difference between right and wrong, and I loved that character growth in her. It was one of the most believable and beautiful character developments I've seen. You hate her in the beginning but are left cheering for her towards the end.
2. THE STORY
The story was also well done as there were so many subplots and sub revenges mixed in with the main plot and main revenge that somehow all tied together beautifully. This was a show that I never grew bored of and always looked forward to the next episode. I was a little disappointed in the ending even though it was considered a happy ending. It was more of a bitter-sweet ending, and I wish we could have seen a happier one, especially after all the pain and suffering they endured. I felt like it was the least they deserved.
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An overall strong production, with a few weaker points
The superior production and direction made this traditional story of palace intrigue very gripping and watchable. Pacing, styling, settings, direction, aesthetic were compelling and interesting.The weak points:
1. The romance aspect was SORELY lacking. There is no passion at all, no romantic chemistry between leads, and a "made for all audiences" sensibility about it. This is not a romance story. Its a palace drama, with a light romantic element to it.
2. Missed the mark on the "strong finish", went overboard and turned it predictable and cheesy.
3. Villains are hard to understand psychologically, have too much screentime, are too cruel and sick, and do not get the endings they deserve in most cases.
Other than that, it was a fun watch.
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Relationship goals and green flags all around
I LOVE POWER COUPLES WHO DON'T HAVE RELATIONSHIP DRAMA THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS MASTERPIECE!!!Pros:
The plot itself was engaging and riveting to the point where I slept 4hrs over the weekend just to binge the whole series and I'm just so thankful they didn't add needless cliché dramatic misunderstandings between the main couple. It was so refreshing to see their mutual trust in each other grow throughout the show. I'm usually not a big romance fan and i hate immature characters. These two are mature, intellectual and so morally good you cannot CANNOT not love them. Even though it's a revenge plot, the revenge is 100% justified and carried out in a... morally upright... way LOL which is not something most can say about the topic on revenge but it was very sane and very satisfying to see the evildoers get rekt.
What I loved the most was the mutual respect the ML and FL showed each other. The information ML gathered he didn't withhold from the FL (unlike some dramas). He never thought for a second that she's incapable of handling that information and trusted her intellect to give her free reign on how to deal with the situation and rather than control her he followed along and weaved his plans around hers. THIS IS HOW RESPECT SHOULD LOOK LIKE! Unlike a lot of shows where the ML keeps things from the FL to "not make her worry" this relationship was a huge green flag from the beginning. Trust your partner! Women are not that weak-minded.
The actress is insane and i actually teared up during a few scenes where I felt her helplessness at her betrayal and the suffering she went through. Wish there could be more than 40 episodes just so I can get more romance scenes hahhahaha which in itself is ludicrous to me because I prefer plot over romance but this time i couldn't help but revisit all their cute moments together. The tension, the attraction, the mutual understanding and trust between them was the crux of the whole show and the main leads played it so well. This show was a tease; I was bingeing for MORE MAIN LEAD INTERACTIONS than i was for the plot hahahahahahaha
The relationships of the main leads with their close friends were also really cute :')
Especially Xiao Heng with the Emperor and his two bodyguards!
The music was also superior. The guqin!!!! during the exam!!!! I need them in full instrumental!!!!!
The scenes and setting were also very artistically framed and shot. The colours were so aesthetic and just pleasant to watch overall. I almost wish I could go on set to photograph the scenes because they were so well done and pretty.
The villains deserve a mention too because they're complex and have their own hardships that made them turn out the way they did. The main 'villain' husband dude was a very morally grey individual which I liked because of how you as a viewer will never know what he's really thinking and what he actually wants. I was kept glued to my seat without sleep because I don't know when he would help or harm the main female lead. He was a good person turned bad by decision and circumstance. I just wish his mother and sister would shut up though lol they were the most annoying characters for me i wish they got worse punishment than they did just for being so annoying. If i were him i would have killed those two instead of the wife.. those ungrateful parasites.
Cons:
I WISH THERE WERE MORE ROMANTIC SCENES I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M SAYING THIS.
Virtually all the main villains had tragic backstories that 'turned them evil' which i feel might have been overdone. Some people are just bad people.
The close ups of the actor's solo shots were a bit jarring at first because I'm not used to this kind of scene directing.
One thing that urked me a bit were the age gaps and the children they got to play the roles. A bit unrealistic to have a 10 year old child on the throne? They used literal kids i mean at least use a teen? In the novel the duke and the emperor was at least mid 20s. I wouldn't trust a 10yo with my house much less a country.
There were some visual effects that weren't needed and made the scene look a bit unrealistic for a supposedly realistic wuxia drama (ahem guqin special effects i'm looking at you) but i guess that scene couldn't have been 6mins of us looking at her playing the song and it was worth it because we got the song in full and the female lead's acting brought me to tears. You can see the agony in her eyes and it hurts you deep. Wait this was supposed to be cons–
tbh there aren't many things i will consider cons. overall it was a really good drama. Sure some characters didn't need to die and I wish a lot of the good supporting actors made it out alive at the other end. But it wasn't wholly unbelievable deaths.
Definitely at the top of my list of dramas i recommend. I'll be rewatching it again probably. The loss of sleep was well worth it.
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Must Watch!!!
This was my first time watching a historical drama and I have to say I was not disappointed. At first I was concerned I wouldn’t finish it because it has 40 episodes, but I thought to myself I’ll probably just skip. I’m used to skipping through dramas but this one I couldn’t, time flew by so quickly and I was on the edge of my seat every episode. Sometimes it felt like some dialogues were too long but the way the actors conveyed it made me not notice. i have to say the actress did an amazing job, she made me cry so much and you could feel her emotions even with little words. As someone who never watched a historical c drama, I would definitely recommend for beginners or anyone else in general.Was this review helpful to you?
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On a journey to revenge that ends in justice and love
The first 10 minutes were instantly gripping.Did I think it was super dramatic, possibly illogical, and over-the-top? Yes.
Did I eat that up? Definitely.
Did I inwardly squeal when Duke Su's fan randomly flew into the scene to save the day? Hell yeah.
This is the first C-drama I got into after a break, and I didn't know historical dramas could balance everything so well. From the revenge to the political intrigue to the action to the romance and even comedic bits, this drama has a bit of everything that makes me love a good historical story. Also - I'm so happy about the ending and extra scenes that wrapped it up perfectly.
As a word of caution, The Double is best enjoyed when you suspend belief and stop overthinking details. The palace schemes ranged from gasp-out-loud plot twist to rolling-eyes cringe. I recommended this drama to my older brother who at first was skeptical, asking me "am I even the right demographic?" Four episodes later, despite him making fun of the overdramaticism and acting, he was HOOKED. I'm telling you, no one can ignore a good revenge counterattack plot.
PROS
❀ Three-dimensional characters that paired well with superb acting
Not sure if this is everywhere in dramaland, or if everyone's using eye drops these days, but the range of emotions from the cast was very palpable (ESPECIALLY the crying scenes lol). Xue FangFei was 'killed' by her husband in QingCheng Mountain and saved by a girl who was also wronged by her family, JiangLi. JiangLi ends up passing away, and XFF assumes her identity to return to the capital, getting revenge on the people who wronged both of them.
Throughout XFF's investigation, she uncovers an intricate web of schemes that involve both her and the Jiang family. I loved seeing her ex-husband Shen YuRong spiraling throughout the series, largely instigated by the unpredictable Eldest Princess, Wanning. Both their actors did an amazing job of portraying characters with inner conflicts (especially SYR) that dictated and justified their actions. They were evil no doubt, but the added backstories added several layers of depth that just topped off their characterizations. Other stand-out roles were the step-mother, the development of the father especially towards the end, and the academy team friendship that was steady throughout the drama.
❀ Smouldering romance that was just perfect to me, idk
First of all, shout out to the makeup artist because all the men (even random side characters) were *chef's kiss*. Best of the best is of course Duke Su, the deadly commander and emperor's right hand man who leaves a trail of fear in his wake. At first, he sees XFF as a useful 'pawn' in his plans and helps her out for his own benefit. Soon though he grows more and more impressed with XFF's quick wit and determination. Yes, Duke Su is OP and is there to save the day. But the show uses that plot armor sparingly, compared to other Cdramas that do it every other episode. I love how both leads have the same goal but are on different paths; because of that goal, they have a mutually beneficial relationship and develop feelings throughout the journey. Their relationship is built on respect and loyalty (not just to each other but to their family, sovereign, etc). I thought that the romantic development throughout the course of the drama was not too slow nor fast actually, since they get a good bit of 1:1 screen time in the midst of other story arcs. And the ending definitely delivered, for my fangirl heart <3
Side note: I like how there was minimal drama between the main leads, because they understand each other so well. There are some mild second leads on both sides romantically, but XFF and Duke Su's feelings never wavered.
Second side note: I usually side-eye dramas with main leads who have age gaps but I think the actors did a great job in closing that gap through their portrayals of the characters. Duke Su's character radiated maturity and strength, which paired well with XFF's cunningness and stubbornness to see things through. The chemistry was also F-I-R-E!
❀ Pretty tight script with good storytelling execution
Although I wouldn't mind more than one season/40 episodes for this story, I'm really happy with the script and dialogue that we got. Compared to other historical Cdramas I've watched, the ending was pretty conclusive and satisfying. Again, I feel like viewers who overthink things might not be as satisfied but I personally really enjoyed how cleanly everything was wrapped up (although there were some tragic events that happened to our non-leads :,)). Despite veering away from the book storyline (since in the book XFF ended up transmigrating into JL's body, which I understand doesn't pass censorship criteria for dramas), I think The Double shines on its own. The revenge/counterattacks were methodical and the different arcs were organized pretty well (ex: academy arc, Ye family arc, Huaixiang, etc), eventually culminating into the final climax. Characters from various arcs reappear as well, making everything come full circle. I don't have high expectations with Cdrama scripts because I'm used to them being messy - lots of back-and-forth between the leads, misunderstandings, random drama that doesn't serve a purpose to the story, etc - but The Double really impressed me with how well they used their screen time.
❀ Just an extra bullet point for how aesthetic everything/everyone was
Especially the dudes with their hair down LMAO.
CONS
✕ Kinda over-the-top at first (especially if you're not used to it)
I'm not going to lie, the dramatic zoom-ins in the beginning had me laughing out loud. Did the director learn this from Bollywood movies? Thankful to report that these zoom-ins decreased throughout the story. Expect similar over-the-top scenes to come.
My brother asked: do you think they're self aware with how cringe some of the scenes are? I said yes, considering one of XFF's lines were, "Duke Su, did you fly here?" when he wugongs his way into her courtyard. She asked what we were all thinking, lmao.
✕ Logic falls apart if you think too deeply
Just settle into this emotional rollercoaster of a drama for entertainment's sake.
✕ Misunderstanding level: 0/10
The main leads were steadfast from start to finish!! No freaking random break-ups towards the end either and annoying martyrdom scenes. It was truly a solid romance.
OVERALL
While this drama balances a lot of genres that make it addicting (action, romance, intrigue, revenge, comedy), there were moments where I was genuinely moved. At the heart of all the revenge schemes and planning is a prevailing sense of justice, and fixing wrongs into rights. That's why it's so easy to cheer for the main leads and support them throughout their journey. The actress for XFF ate and left no crumbs in her role as she climbed out of her own grave to seek justice for not only herself, but her family and the people around her. I think all 40 episodes were enjoyable and intentionally used, creating an ultimately satisfying revenge plot that I recommend Cdrama lovers to watch.
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Amazing enough to garner my first review on MDL heh.
*ps minus the last 15 mins as others have noted, I'll forget that ever happened ok ok~The drama is gripping and well-paced. Chemistry and angst, the eye gazes and sexual tension are killer. The actors (even without a lot of your usual "A" listers or typical ones we've been seeing lately giving lackluster performance...IYKYK!!) have gone over and beyond to connect deeply with their roles and deliver on an outstanding level. They make many references to how they're putting on "a show/play" and they definitely put on an amazing one at that! The occasional arc to build towards the end were however a little long but there wasn't much downtime for a show which was good. Yes, the last maybe 10 ish eps had more scenes cut to fit the 40ep timeline but it delivers much better than some of the other shows lately in the post 2020 era of Cdramas.
I did want to note that I think all of our villains had such "positive" backlighting to their -sad- histories and pasts. They really wanted to humanize them and tbh I think all our bad guys got it off easy. Not much time to sit on their "regrets" but with easy things like suicide (x2) and going mad!? Anyways - I felt that could have been a bit more fleshed out to see their character truly repent and apologize.
Also some people didn't really like the fact there were some "plotholes" to the FL's identity and how it was slightly glossed over (albeit revisited) and not pursued. Even the Emperor, did he know??! He's in on it I figured! Hah! Cute.
Anyways Here to also say I could have definitely wished for more fan service or skinship but I'll give it to them for building a strong enough ship that I'm okay without it. They were really firing up the screen and I was always so giddy for their glances, smiles and little moments. Could do with more of 'em for sure. I'll be adding this to my top to-rewatch/recommend dramas! I will miss this. The cast, the plot, the OST, the action scenes, and the overall energy this gave to my rather sad 2024 Cdrama year. I will see you guys hopefully on the next! I'm always looking for other good rec's like this. Cheers!
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