Coroner's Diary

The pacing is painfully slow.

This is a good drama with leads who actually make sense and it's something I truly appreciate. The chemistry is solid, and the character motivations are believable. However, the pacing is painfully slow. The story feels like it's going in circles at times. I understand that it's a journey-centered narrative about a coroner, so naturally, there are going to be multiple cases to solve. But the sheer number of side cases, without any real movement in the main plot, becomes frustrating.

We're told there's a deeper mystery involving her family's execution, yet the drama barely touches it. No real clues, no significant developments, just case after case. I kept waiting for the main arc to unfold, but it feels like it's constantly being delayed.

There are also quite a few unnecessary scenes that could’ve been trimmed to tighten the storytelling. Still, despite all that, I find myself rooting for the characters and enjoying their dynamic. So yes, it’s a great drama in many ways, I just wish the plot would finally move forward.

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Boring

To be brief this is an incredibly boring and deeply predictable show with little substance to any of its characters or proper thought towards the overall plot.

To be less brief, Coroners Diary clearly went in with good intent but failed to reach anything that I think it aspired to. The acting was fine but the characters were bland and one note. Even though they tried to give Shen Wan depth and make her seem like there was layers the writing did not reflect that. Slowly giving her more emotions would work if they did it in parts but the made her a serious mary sue and then all of a sudden were like whoops need her to smile some more. Yan Chi was fun but again boring and deeply deeply unrealistic, they made him a mary sue too. I also have the maybe controversial opinion that Li Landi and Ao Ruipeng had absolutely no chemistry as Shen Wan and Yan Chi, like I did not believe them in love for even a second. For a show that is primarily a romance that's severely disappointing!!

As for the plot, I decided to drop the show because I got to ep 23 and there was absolutely no progress in the original mystery/goal of the show. As much as I love an episodal mystery there should be better tie-ins to the original intention, otherwise it makes it look like the writers just forgot it. And the mysteries were not great either unfortunately. They were either too predictable and handed the answer to the audience wayy too early on or were completely nonsensical and left you in the complete dark until the mc magically discovered the answer. This lack of balance made it hard to want to invest in the mysteries.

The directing was also very distracting. The director was clearly trying to establish a pattern with his shots with the focus switches to different plants/objects but it was really distracting and not well done. None of the other shots that were set up to be interesting quite hit the mark either but the editing kept it coherent.

I wish there had been more thought to the balance of the episodes and the way the characters develop. The acting was fine, visually it was okay, some of the villains were interesting. Unfortunately nothing can save a romance without chemistry or a mystery that never comes to full fruition.

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Best drama of 2025 so far

I can barely finish cdramas but this one made me interested from start to finish. I thiught they were just gonna solve random cases but it has profound and deep meaning on how women are treated back in the days. I am glad that the ML has more leading role. His chemistry with FL is top notch. I love the dialogues here. Kudos to the writer. I love the touch or humor as well. It’s a good blend. I like this drama more than POB because of the unnecessary death in the end. Here all good. Justice has been served.. The acting of the leads in the cases are commendable as well. I look forward to watching ML and FL as leads in a modern drama. Their face card and chemistry didn’t disappoint

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One of the best cdramas I've ever watched!!!! JUST GORGEOUS

This might be one of the best cdramas I've ever seen. My favorite cdramas to date have been love o2o, love between fairy and devil, lighter & princess, the double and the first frost. I didn't think any dramas would top them, but Coroner's Diary soared to at least top 3. It had EVERYTHING I've been looking for in a drama. Beautiful characters, gorgeous costumes, plot twists, and a romance that was slow burn and yearning with mutual respect!!!!!! It was just so addicting. The different cases throughout the drama, the connections between one event and the next, and the tension!!! I loved how the fml wasn't a fighter, but she had her own wits and skills in solving cases while the ml was mutually aiding her and cheering her on! It kind of reminded me of the feels I had while watching the double. It was just so INTERESTING!!!!!

I've never seen a li landi and ARP drama before, but I love them both SO SO SO MUCH now!!!!!! She's so pretty and he's incredibly handsome. Also, can I say how amazing their acting was? I was caught off guard with their micro expressions, tone and eyes! INCREDIBLE ACTING.

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Murder, Mystery, and a Dash of Romance – The Coroner's Diary Review

If The Imperial Coroner and The Coroner's Diary were siblings, I'd say the elder sibling (Imperial Coroner) is sharper in intrigue and mystery 🔍, while the younger (Coroner's Diary) is sweeter with more heart-eyes and romantic fluff 💕.
I loved The Coroner's Diary! The cast did a great job—solid performances all around. The ML had charm, brains, and just enough puppy energy to make us root for him 🐶. The FL was smart, steady, and not the type to faint at the sight of blood—finally, someone who knows what a coroner is supposed to be! 🙌
That said... The Imperial Coroner still holds the crown when it comes to mystery, plot twists, and pacing 👑. It had a slightly tighter grip on the crime-solving, while The Coroner's Diary sometimes got distracted by its own romantic tension (not complaining, just saying 😏). If you came for the forensics and stayed for the feels, this one delivers both, just with more uwu moments.
Both dramas are worth watching, depending on what you want more of—mystery or mush. Personally, I watched one after the other and had a great time bingeing. Would I watch it again? Probably when I forget who the killer was 🤭.

Final verdict: Fun, romantic, a little less gritty than its predecessor but still full of charm.🧪🕵️‍♀️💗

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4 out of 5)

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best drama in this mid year 2025

I never watch coroner drama before, and this drama gave me another new vibe of historical drama. I love how FL is smart and talents most important things she's alway be positive and down to earth person while ML is brave, smart and strategist. Second FL and ML they're both really passed the vibe the way they enjoy theirselves, hobbies and character. Screenwriter in this drama do a great job they don't make the drama feel bored nor complicated storyline. The ost 此爱-敖瑞鹏 & 别叹-黄霄雲 these two songs really soothe my soul. Overall the 22 episodes I have watched so far i can say that this drama, story line ,plots, and OST all surpassed "The Princess's Gambit" and "A Dream within a Dream" in my opinion.
I never leave a review before but this drama too good to not leave any comment here. Highly recommend to C-drama fan out there to watch this drama.

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Truly a MASTERPIECE ✨️

I mean where do I start , great acting , great chemistry between leads even other couples were great , great plot .

from the start to finish everything was great although for me in the middle it dragged little bit , but the ending was great and a big plot twist .

I mean I suspected the emperor had to do something with all the deaths at the end but never understood why would he kill his own sons , turned out to be an imposter 😅

everyone got their happy ending, that's what was great about the ending .

loved that this drama was fast paced and ML was smart enough to know that she was shen Wan not Qin Wan, I would have hated to see you betrayed my trust arc .

so sad that it had to end 😩

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this has romance in spades

A stunningly produced drama with great acting, impressive sets, wonderful choreography, and a well thought out plot. Overall this story really delivered on its level of acting, character development, and plot coherency and progression. If you like detective type dramas that are heavy with the romance then you'll like this story. But what really knocks the rating down for me is how painfully long this felt. I am a binge type of watcher and I can usually get through a drama of this length in 2-3 days, but this show took me a week to get through because I kept pausing.

I love the story and the intrigue and was addicted enough to really want to know who did it which is what carried me to the end. But because the culprit was so glaringly obvious most the time I did not find myself guessing or sitting on the edge of my seat. And the obviousness being introduced so early into the case would make the fact that each case was between 3-5 episodes long feel glacial. I get that our protagonists needed to figure everything out and find the clues but the directors choice to also include the antagonists stories and the placement of them took away any suspense the cases could have delivered.

My other large complaint is that they made the protagonists boringly perfect. Both Qin Wan and Yan Chi were amazing at everything without any missteps. Qin Wan is an excellent strategist, doctor, and coroner. She is patient and composed and can predict schemes directed at her to avoid trouble. She is too perfect. I love that she is skilled and independent but realistically she should have some flaws but everything just came easy to her. Same thing with Yan Chi. He is a skilled martial artist, sees clues well, can solve mysteries fluently and quickly, and even is emotionally intelligent. He also has no flaws and the pair never make any mistakes. While good for the story it is also a bit boring.

I do love the romance though. The couples have plenty of chemistry, clear confessions and expressions of affection, and loyalty. While I did like the story as a whole and enjoyed the romance I can only recommend this in pieces. Do not try to watch in one go. But in small bits this was done very well.

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Intriguing, Well-Crafted, and Visually Striking

The story is excellent, filled with twists and turns, and the storyline is clearly well thought out, it definitely deserves a high rating. I was also amazed by the drama’s cinematography, which felt unique compared to most Chinese dramas. And of course, hats off to the costumes, no surprise there, since the costume designer also worked on Moonlight Mystique.

That said, I did notice some odd scenes that seemed disconnected from the previous ones. Perhaps they were cut due to the 45-minute runtime limit. I think the visual effects could use more effort, ideally reaching the same level as Korean medical dramas.

One more thing, usually I can eat while watching C-dramas, but for this one, I couldn’t! The autopsy scenes were so graphic and realistic that eating was out of the question, in the best, most immersive way possible.

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