My Journey to You

a rather slow journey

to begin, I have heard of this drama for a while since I got into kdramas then cdramas and decided to check it out

I was mostly intrigued by the whole female assassin plot and I already knew a good chunk of what this type of trope was (the spy sent to kill but falls in love with their target) I was rather curious on the execution

it was disappointing because it loses its intrigueness by the middle point of the story
the beginning was good, middle point it got rather boring and slow and by the finale episode it got interesting again and the ending was just huh?

I liked seeing gong ziyu character evolve, I mean who doesn’t love a underdog story?
it was rather annoying how long the breaks were between each trials because I mostly felt it wasn’t taken seriously and the constant back and forth was hard to keep up

tho he is the master of his family now so it’s understandable why they did that but during the middle arc of the story if it wasn’t for his older sister comedic timing, I would’ve gotten bored quite easily

the ending was just badly done, I did some research and it is confirmed by the director that the ending was intended to be sad and it seems he doesn’t have any plans anytime soon for a season 2

I know this drama went through difficulties back then because of a actor who got into a scandal but the ending was rather badly written. because I interpret it as more of an open ending probably like many others but as an open ending it had way too many storylines that they didn’t bother to wrap up
so if they plan to ever make a s2 in the future I think it would be rather difficult to pick up where they left off without some weird/awkward pacing

the romance plot line was rather disappointing because I looked forward to the ZLH and YSX pairing and it a shame it didn’t really do them justice (I hope they get reunited in a future romance drama together)
the 2nd couple tho! they stole my attention with their tension every scene like omg I was invested
I hope they reunite in another drama as leads as well

YSX was so cool in this role!! that I wish she would get more opportunities to portray similar roles like this in the future vs the typecasting of constant cute,adorable, sunshine, positive character
I mean I have nothing against these type of characters but it rather limits her abilities but also let others make stupid assumption about her acting abilities as well

overall I think it really is up to you to watch the drama and decide whether or not it’s good cause I wouldn’t really recommended unless you want to see cool female assassins like I did lol

Read More

Beautiful dark and riveting

I keep going back to how genuinely gorgeous this drama was. The colors, aesthetic, every shot was so beautiful and cinematic I couldn't get enough. I think a lot of dramas are beautiful but suffer from low budget and these days the 3D printed costumes and props are cheap and common. This drama doesn't rely on any of that but solely on the beauty of the environment and the actors themselves. God, every single person in this drama is beautiful. When Esther said that the director promised he would give her the most beautiful shots, he was not lying.

Watching this show felt like reading a book in the best way possible. The plot was intriguing and I was obsessed with every character's thoughts and motivations. I will admit the ending fell and I was quite disappointed but I still very much enjoyed every minute of watching this.

I will be watching everything this director does from now on because he is my new Greta Gerwig.

Read More

I watched this drama twice before writing my review

Let’s start with I like or love about this drama:
1. OST - idk but it has me in a spell
2. Aesthetic/visual/cinematography - I saw the trailer of this drama and I told myself, “wow I’m going to watch that for the vibes”
3. Acting - I know how some didn’t like Esther here but this was a breath of fresh air for me. The dramas I’ve seen her in, she’s always the vibrant, cute character. Here I think she was able to pull the “no feelings, I’m supposed to be blank assassin” 😂. But really I think everyone was pretty good but Cheng Lei, Lu Yu Xiao, Tian Jian Rui, eldest young miss, Hanya Si, and the back hill boys stole the show for me
4. I love the characters, I think they all served their purpose. My Back Hill boys have a special place in my heart

What I didn't like:
THE FACT THAT THERE IS NO SEASON 2 OR CONFIRMATION OF IT!!! Because after watching this twice, that was the gate opening!!! What a literal open-ended ending

Read More

ok

Welcome to the world of assassins and lords where drinking tea and poisons are your everyday meal. premier of the drama was interesting, assassins invading the area in disguise as a bride, but later felt the true purpose of the story was lost in too many side stories. the true plot and the mastermind behind all this was revealed at the very end, alwhile it was just events leading to it.
my greatest disappointment was the lead chemistry, which seemed forced atleast on the FL part. the ML who was portrayed as a weakling was helped by the FL to pass the initial tests which seemed as a betrayal on the story to me.
and suddenly our ML becomes more confident and powerful with training, which seemed unbelievable.
the only thing that marginally saved this drama was the second lead and their Chemi, zishang and jin fan❤️, the plot of this drama which is also not 100% perfect, and had its own plot holes

Read More

Intriguing story, complex characters, dark setting

The cinematography is beautiful like the costumes, the cast is fantastic and the story is deep, thrilling and dark.

People aren't who they say they are, loyalties are uncertain and friendships can turn sour. This drama has all the suspense and mystery to keep you hooked with a beautiful cast and stunning visuals. The fight scenes are well choreographed.

I love the overall setting and theming. Its a very believable and compelling storyline that mellows out slightly towards the end. I loved seeing the two girls deceive each other and also work together for their own goals. the mail leads are stunning and experienced.

The main negative is the ending which is not complete, it is open ended and leaves you a bit confused at what they were going for story wise. There is also not too much romance but the rest of the drama carries it enough that it is not overly necessary.

Read More

Great Action! Second Lead Couple Amazin!

It started off good. But then not much was happening, then something happened, and then back to not much, and then right at the end too much was happening.

I love the action here! The fighting was impressive! To my surprised was seeing the actresses get dirty during those scenes were they are fighting in water mud through Wufeng's training ground or whatever, idk usually even until the character's death the director's would preserved their beauty or not to get their makeup ruined so I do appreciate little moments were actresses would get dirty for role/scene. I'm back to watching cdramas again so excuse me if this note was random.

I do like the second lead couple a lot more. There's so much complexity and depth into those two characters that made them so interesting to watch every time and how they are both unpredictable characters makes it also interesting to watch as compared to the main lead which they more stale, predictable and quite boring. As much as I wanted to root for the main couple since I loved these two in Love Between Fairy and Devil, I can't say the same for them in this drama. It's just they are too plain, though there were a few cute moments I enjoyed them! I lowkey have a ghost ship between Yun and Yuan Zhi, they would honestly make the best enemies to lovers ngl.

Shang Jue was a character that was supposed to be like an antagonist brother, idk what to label him anywho, even so, I couldn't help but agree with him a lot of the times even though he was making it harder for the ML. Even if I didn't like his attitude before I wouldn't hate the idea of him being the next Sword Wielder, in fact I be all for it because nothing he said was honestly wrong. His intuition and lead was spot on most of the time.

I do find the defeat of the Elder brother a bit underwhelming? I also felt like a lot of things were happening in an episode all at once during this battle which is understandable since lots of things can happen during a big battle however it was just a lot to take in idk. Especially the Young Master Hua's death, his character was so minimal his death was so unexpected especially when we barely just found out about his identity as a Young Master, and his little backstory that we are suppose to care about I mean it's still pitiful and sad, but like there's not much to build off his character and story ngl especially since he rarely ever gets scenes.

Honestly, this could be said with a lot of the character's death here, like the ML's father (the transition to his death wasn't impactful enough to make me feel sorry for the ML or the father, the only time i actually connected to the ML's father was when the flashback scene of him doing gardening for the ML's mother, seeing that made me empathize for him and how his love wasn't being send the way he wanted it to unknowingly. This was more impactful than him being a typical harsh father who pushed his son to success out of love. I think the bother, Shang Jue did a better job doing the emotional push to make the ML stronger. However what shouldn't have been surprising but was still surprising for me was that before the father died, his choice to pass on the Sword Wielder position was to Shang Jue cause typically I'm used to just the father always choosing the ML regardless of how unfitted they are for the position starting off.)

ML's mother death (personally, i didn't care about her, in fact I actually was really annoyed with her, like i get it, she misunderstood the ML's father's love nor did she wanted to understand it since she loved someone else, but all the talk from Wuji about how "even if she was emotionally unavailable to be your mother she still loved you", like i know deep down she cared about her own son, but truthfully i can't sympathize with her character. She gave birth to him so yah she's a mother, she showed him one act of motherly love in which he cherish that memory but like, that's only one memory of her not neglecting her child so of course he cherished that memory and mask which he doesn't care for anymore lmfao because it was brought up and never brought up ever again, but other than that TO ME she really hasn't earned her right to be a mother. But the ML loves her so what can I really say, if he recognizes her as his mother then I can't really say much about it only about the writing/character).

To my surprised was Shangguan Qian win against Jin Fan. Go girl. Honestly I think I have more to say but I'm going to leave it at this until the next season? If we do get it lmfao...

Read More

this is okay the best for me but the ending could have been fixed the way it ended so suddenly was not expected but ik it will be hopeless wishing for season 2 knowing it is imposible. but hopefully u dont watch it during finals cause it is really interesting to watch with those plots going on one after another.the love story might be not what u expected but for me its pretty watchable 100% tell u guys to watch it

the start is cool,fine but it gets bitter and more complicated as it moves forward better to pay attention to some clips cause some people like to skip a lot but trust me dont .

Read More

Intricate and unpredictable plot with dramatic cinematography and apt casting

This show was a captivating watch. At just 24eps, My Journey To You sits at the perfect length - it doesn't drag out the story and manages to tie up all loose ends without straying from the plotline. Every twist and turn had me on the edge of my seat and I thoroughly enjoyed this watch. However, given that the drama's greatest strength comes from its unpredictable plot, I would argue that the rewatch value of this show is not high. This does of course also depend on how much you are attached to the characters - in this case, I had very minimal emotional attachment to the characters, hence I do not feel compelled to rewatch this show in the slightest (and this is coming from someone who gets attached very easily and LOVES rewatching dramas). Nonetheless, I do not regret this watch and it was certainly highly entertaining, albeit very different from what I usually watch and love.

I'll start with the show's strengths. First, the plot is insanely well-crafted and well thought-out. As someone who doesn’t care that much for plot in general (I prioritise well fleshed-out romance and storytelling typically), I was highly entranced by the plot of My Journey To You. Seriously, there were SO many twists and turns that when I think I’ve figured it out, the show throws me another curveball and I am blown away by the unexpected reveal. The plot is so intricate and has so many layers to it that you really can’t guess it all, you just have to sit through it and continue watching and let everything fall into place. Once things start making sense, something else will arise and you’ll be left on the edge of your seat again - I honestly loved that. I was captivated by the storyline and the depth to each character. This show has undoubtedly one of the best plotlines I’ve ever seen and I was highly impressed. It’s definitely on the darker side and the whole worldbuilding is based on a very dark concept, but it was very enjoyable nonetheless - this is a very cohesive show.

Next, the cinematography of this show was really impressive, specifically during dramatic moments and fight scenes, which exude elegance and grace. Edward Guo (the director)’s shows are always so satisfying to watch because his cinematography is pretty much unmatched. My Journey To You didn’t have cinematography anywhere as good as his other show, Fangs of Fortune (which I HIGHLY recommend), but it was still very fitting to the darker theme and I think it added a much-needed layer of mystery and suspense to the show in general. This is one of the reasons why I say that this is a cohesive show - because the storyline, cinematography, music, and costuming all align to form one great picture. Never doubt Edward Guo's work!

Music-wise, I really enjoyed the OST and BGM of this show. The OSTs were all beautiful and had the beautiful element of mystique to it. They really added so much to the atmosphere of everything and heightened tension, creating some beautifully heart-wrenching moments. In particular, I think the best OST was the one Esther (fl) herself sang, it really feels like the whole show wrapped into one song. This show has an impressive and sonically cohesive OST, which really elevates the viewing experience.

Costuming was also done quite well. There was nothing extraordinary about it, but the dark costumes really fit the theme of the show, though I also really liked the lighter costumes (my favourite is the lilac one Esther wore towards the end of the show).

As far as endings go, I think this show did it quite well. Minus the last maybe 15mins of the last ep (which I personally felt was unnecessary but I do understand that perhaps they wanted to leave it open which certainly fits the vibe of the show), the rest of the ending was wrapped up very well. There are certainly many unanswered questions [SPOILER] especially with the 2nd couple - where did the 2nd fl go? Did she die, or did she ever come back, or did they ever truly love each other beyond their individual schemes and suspicions? And of course with the main couple, what happened to her? Did she ever come back, and if she didn’t why didn’t she? What’s the story behind her twin, how did she find her, how did they both end up with Wufeng, why were they separated? Who knew about her and what happened to her before they were reunited? What’s the whole point of Wufeng and how did it begin? The show really opens up many questions and unearths a much larger scheme beyond the main plotline of infiltrating the palace and discovering its secrets. While the main plot is resolved quite nicely, the ending does open a lot of new avenues and hints at the possibility of a second season (though I personally don’t think that is likely to happen at all). I think all these unanswered questions really do add to the mystery of the show in general and fits nicely with their theme of mystique because it somehow feels right that we didn’t get the answers to everything. If you’re very attached to the characters, you’d probably not be a fan of this ending. I didn’t care much for them personally, so I wasn’t very affected by the ending being open (and presumably, sad).

As for the cast, I started watching this show for Esther, Zhang Linghe, and the Fangs of Fortune cast cameos, but my favourite part of this show ended up being Tian Jiarui. I love him so much it’s actually concerning. He did an impeccable job even though he was only a support role (as the 2nd ml's brother). His acting was really impressive because his half-deranged smiles really gave me the mega creeps even though I loved him so much. His styling was also really fitting to his character and he looked so good - sorry can you tell I’m a huge fan of him? LOL. As for the 2nd fl and ml, I was pretty taken with their romance storyline too tbh, though it’ll leave you questioning whether there was even romance or if any of it was even real on both/either of their parts. They have good chemistry and a pretty solid cp感 (which kind of loosely translates to cp sense?), and they both did wonderful in terms of acting. The 2nd fl is really pretty and her acting was solid!!! The 2nd ml also did a good job, I’m not personally a fan of either of them irl (no beef - I just don’t know them well and don’t feel compelled to, not at this point in time anyway) but they were fantastic in their roles. As for the main couple, I didn’t really find much spark in their romance tbh, I wasn’t actively rooting for them or anything but they’re just cute to watch together. I don’t feel that their romance was done well, it felt super rushed and they fell in love way too fast for my liking. However, I will say that I have very high requirements/standards for romance in shows as it’s the main thing I focus on in a show and very, very few dramas live up to these standards. So I won’t go into much detail, because this is very much a personal preference. Nonetheless, both leads did a good job with the acting, especially Esther. I don’t really think Zhang Linghe stood out much in this role if I’m being frank, and I am a fan of his irl so this is merely an objective observation. I was much more impressed with his performance in Love Between Fairy and Devil. Personally, I don’t find his acting skills to be anywhere near top-notch, and I find that they were a little lacking in this show, but nothing that affects the viewing experience. Esther however did a wonderful job, especially seeing as how this is her first darker role, and she absolutely killed it, including the voice acting/dubbing. Nonetheless, I wouldn’t watch this show for the acting or the romances. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t worth much either. Again, I say this as a fan of both Esther and Zhang Linghe.

In terms of characterisation, I’d say that this show did that quite well and managed to make every character highly complex with their own complicated motivations and priorities that we as viewers don’t always figure out or understand clearly, but that also means that most of these characters are not really likeable. I know I personally didn’t really have a character whom I loved wholeheartedly - there were moments in which I liked a character, but it was often only in that point in time.

If you’re up for something different, or something darker, or you’re simply tired of predictable plots and want to watch something truly captivating and intellectually stimulating, I would recommend this show. Overall, it was an entrancing watch and I don’t regret it, though it’s certainly not my usual cup of tea and I’d likely never rewatch it ever. This show is pretty popular especially internationally, and I do think it deserves the praise it gets. Huge round of applause to the directors, screenwriters, and writers who built the bulk of the show, and the actors and actresses who brought it to life!

If you’d like to see more of Esther and Zhang Linghe, they were previously semi-paired in Love Between Fairy and Devil (he was her 2nd ml but they did have some cute moments together), which also happens to be my favourite show ever LOL.

Read More

Interesting Journey

At first I have read so many good reviews about this series so I started to watch. But at the end I almost regretted it.
Not many actions, beautiful costumes and good casting. I like these.
I like fact that they put more energy in family conflicts and relationships than romance. It wa sa very good choice and it was very interesting to see how they act and interact as a family.
There was one plot twist that surprised me and i love that. But there was another (it includes Shanguan Qian - in the last episode what she said to Shangjue) which was silly and i started to laugh. Did they really use this? Oh my god! Such a silly trick from writers and hope it is just a lie.
It was so hard for me to like any characters in this whole story. It is not a bad thing but it can be easier to understand their character and motivation if you can connect to the characters.
It is a very slow story but good acting and conversation. I almost stopped watching but at the end when told everything about those plans and plot twist started to come I was so happy. I was like "finally it became badass" but then it hit me in the back and after the last scene with Gong Ziyu sitting at the gate (hope it is not counted as spoiler) I wanted to see who will come in when the door opened. But they just finished it this way. Oh come on! Please continue. I just want to see who is coming 🤣
And I hope Gong Shangjue gets his brain back and realise what he needs to.

Read More

overall a really nice series!

the plot was reallyyyyy good as someone who likes watching mystery-centered shows, and while it may seem redundant to tohers, i actually like the continuous suspense that it gives us because it gives me something to look forward to.

however, i personally i thought it was confusing and dragging around eps 19-20 because a lot of things either weren’t making sense or were all over the place. i get that it gets explained later on and really clicks when you see the full picture, but if you don’t really know the context then it does get a little boring because you don’t understand (from what i felt!). nonetheless, i always get a big sense of satisfaction when they’re being cunning and their plan is eventually laid out.

also wtf was that last scene actually? why’d they do all that when they’re not gonna make a s2… honestly the whole series could’ve been a solid 9/10 but the ending pmo LOL

Read More

Stunning Cast, Shocking Plot Twist, But an Ending That Ruined It All

“My Journey to You” starring Zhang Linghe and Esther Yu deserves serious praise for the outstanding acting performances. Both leads delivered emotionally charged, compelling portrayals, and the second leads were also perfectly cast. Honestly, even the supporting roles were filled with high-quality actors and actresses—this cast lineup is top-tier!

But here’s the thing… the story itself wasn’t gripping enough. It lacked that addictive, suspenseful pull that makes you desperate to click the next episode. That said, it did surprise me with a really good plot twist—one that I didn’t see coming at all. The twist gave the story a much-needed kick… but then came the open ending.

Personally, I’m not a fan of open endings, especially when it feels like there won’t be a season 2—or worse, if there is, it might not even connect well with season 1. That just left me incredibly disappointed. Like, painfully disappointed. 😭

The drama started off strong, but honestly? It wasn’t captivating enough overall. If this show aired in 2025 or 2024, it would’ve easily been overshadowed by other dramas with stronger storylines. It’s not that it’s bad, but there are just better options out there.

Watch it for the acting. Skip it if you hate unsatisfying endings.!!

Read More